Father of Giants star Toby Greene charged with assaulting a police officer
A passerby has described the chaotic scene at the MCG on Saturday afternoon when the father of Giants star Toby Greene was arrested after allegedly assaulting a female police offer.
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GWS star Toby Greene’s father is facing a six-month mandatory jail sentence after he allegedly headbutted a female police officer escorting him from the MCG during Saturday’s AFL Grand Final.
Michael Greene, 60, is believed to have been asleep in a toilet at the ground during the Richmond-GWS clash when police were called to reports of an “alcohol-affected” man about 5pm.
Witness Annie saw Michael Greene’s arrest unfold outside the MCG after the game.
“I noticed all of these police there, the next minute the man was going completely off,” Annie told the Herald Sun.
“He’s screaming out things. We all said ‘what a disgrace’.
“He had a backpack which the police were going through.
“Then the AFL security staff were called in to create another barricade.
“It was so bizarre to see so many cops. Police did a great job containing the situation.
“He was clearly a very agitated, angry man. He was going off, quite aggressive.
“It could have escalated.
“When he started screaming, I grabbed my handbag, I thought this could get out of control. You just don’t know these days.”
Annie said she saw police put Greene in the back of a divvy van which then left the ground.
Greene faced the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Sunday charged with assaulting the police officer.
The Ferntree Gully man was also charged with intentionally cause injury, resist police and assault police.
Video footage obtained by the Herald Sun shows Greene sitting in handcuffs and surrounded by police at the MCG
He made no application for bail and will next appear at the Ringwood Magistrates’ Court on October 2.
The government introduced legislation last September that required courts to jail offenders who assaulted emergency workers for a mandatory minimum of six months.
His arms were folded and he was wearing a blue shirt covering an orange GWS piece of clothing.
Mr Greene’s lawyer said her client required suboxone and valium while remanded in custody.
Michael Greene posted to social media on Saturday a picture of him and three other males in GWS merchandise outside the MCG.
“The Greene’s (sic) in orange. Never thought I’d see the day,” the post said.
The Herald Sun understands Toby Greene is estranged from his father and the pair haven’t had a relationship in years.
The Giants star spent his childhood in both Ashburton with his mother and Malvern with his father. The parents split when Greene was “five or six’’, he told the Herald Sun earlier this month, but said that did not deny him having a loving upbringing.
“No, I don’t think I had a difficult upbringing. Mum and dad were pretty much the complete opposite,” he said.
Mum was a really good mum. I went to a private school, got a scholarship to Wesley and that was lucky.”
A Greater Western Sydney Giants club spokeswoman said: “The club will not be making any comment on the matter.”
TEAMMATES RALLY AROUND TOBY
GWS teammates have rallied around Toby Greene and called on critics to show empathy to the superstar, after he was forced to deal with the fallout of his estranged father being arrested on grand final day.
Greene put on a brave face as he fronted a Giants fan day at Sydney Olympic Park just hours after it emerged his father Michael fronted court for allegedly headbutting ~a female police officer at the MCG on Saturday.
The allegation has left Greene understandably angry and distressed that his name has been dragged into the spotlight over an incident that has nothing to do with him.
Much-maligned for the way he plays the game, it’s clear Greene has privately had plenty to deal with off the field this year — after his mother, Kate spoke last week about the tragic loss of his cousin, Finley to suicide.
Greene received one of the loudest receptions of any Giants player when he was presented on stage on Sunday, and captain Phil Davis asked those quick to find fault to put themselves in the 26-year-old’s shoes.
“For Toby, it’s obviously not the perfect scenario for him to be in (allegations against his father). We’ll put our arms around him, he’s a terrific person so what we’ll do is support him,” said Davis.
“I think from my point of view, people make a huge amount of assertions about Toby without knowing the man.
“In my opinion some of (the assertions) are completely unfair and (untrue) as well.
“It’s disappointing at times as a team and a good friend of him that he gets treated with what I think is a lack of respect.
“He does it hard and it’d be nice if people could think about what it would be like in his shoes.”
Greene’s mother, Kate, who consoled her son in emotional scenes in the GWS dressing rooms after the grand final, gave a statement on Sunday distancing the family from Michael Greene.
“Toby is estranged from his father,” she said in a statement on Sunday to Channel 7.
“His father has battled mental health issues and has had nothing to do with this family for over 20 years.”
GWS coach Leon Cameron spoke post-match of his concern that Greene would take on too much of the blame himself.
Greene was inconsolable in the rooms after the 89-point drubbing by Richmond.
Giants chief executive David Matthews admonished critics for the external pressure put on Greene’s shoulders, in an interview on Saturday night.
“You don’t want to see any individual unnecessarily burdened by expectation,” said Matthews.
“He gets a lot of pressure on him Toby Greene and a lot of it is unfair, but over time he’ll build a career where people will look back on him. He already has the respect of the competition as a player and absolutely has our respect as a person.”
TOP COP LABELS ALLEGED ASSAULTS AS ‘RIDICULOUS’
Two other police officers were allegedly assaulted on the job at the MCG, with one bitten and another struck to the back of the head.
The incident where police were allegedly assaulted happened about 5.45pm.
Police allege a 21-year-old Brookfield man bit an officer and a 27-year-old Brookfield man struck a second police officer to the back of the head after they were spoken to about their behaviour.
The police officer allegedly bitten has been taken to hospital for treatment.
Both were charged with assault police and were released on bail.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton labelled the three alleged assaults on police officers as “ridiculous” and “abhorrent.”
“It is just not good enough that police should be subjected to that sort of behaviour,” Mr Ashton said.
“Any violence towards police officers is abhorrent and is to be deplored.
“The sort of issues our police are dealing with these days is getting progressively more difficult.
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“While crime is remaining fairly flat, we do still see escalation in the sorts of violence that officers have to deal with and that is getting worse.”
Police said they evicted 43 people for offences including assault police, drunk possess alcohol, drugs offences, ticketing offence and behavioural offences.
Police arrested a further six people in Richmond overnight.
Three people were arrested for being drunk and three people were summoned to appear at court for discharging flares.