Tony Mokbel at risk of psychosis, suicidal tendencies after jailhouse attack

Mobster Tony Mokbel is still dealing with the consequences of an infamous jailhouse attack, which left him with serious brain injuries.

Tony Mokbel leaves Melbourne Magistrates Court with his lawyer, Nicola Gobbo.

Lawyers for Tony Mokbel say he is at risk of psychosis and suicidal tendencies due to his “extreme social isolation” following a jailhouse attack that left him with serious brain injuries.

Mokbel, 57, is serving a 30-year jail term but is seeking a sentence discount after a conviction for cocaine importation was quashed on appeal because his barrister Nicola Gobbo — known as Lawyer X – provided information to police while representing him.

The drug kingpin’s lawyer Julie Condon KC told the Victorian Court of Appeal on Monday her client, who remains behind bars on other drug charges, should have certainty about the length of his jail sentence.

She noted Mokbel was subject to a “strict” management regimen that saw him socially isolated from other inmates after a vicious prison stabbing four years ago nearly claimed his life.

Referring to a psychiatric report from late last year, Ms Condon said Mokbel spent more than 20 hours a day in his cell in the high-security Melaleuca unit of Barwon Prison, was not allowed to socialise with the mainstream prison population and did not take part in work or rehabilitation programs.

Melbourne lawyer Nicola Gobbo. Picture: ABC News

Tony Mokbel.

Mokbel told the psychiatrist he had not stepped foot onto grass since the assault and had just 30 minutes of contact with another inmate a day.

“The conditions of his custody have impeded his rehabilitation,” Ms Condon said.

Referring to court documents, Ms Condon also said her client did not accept that he was subject to strict conditions because he had refused protection in custody.

Mokbel was left fighting for his life and spent weeks in a coma after he was stabbed with a “shiv” by fellow inmates Teira Bennett and Eldea Teuira in the prison’s exercise yard in February 2019.

A prison psychiatrist assessed Mokbel, finding he had made a “remarkable but incomplete recovery” with ongoing cognitive difficulties with memory, planning and organisation.

He recommended Mokbel be removed from social isolation to mitigate his risk of developing psychosis and suicidal tendencies.

“He told me he simply wanted to be placed in the mainstream population so he could work and socialise with other prisoners,” the report stated.

Ms Condon said there was an “interplay” between Mokbel’s prison conditions and his recovery from the assault, noting he staged a six-day hunger strike when family contact was banned amid Covid restrictions.

Mokbel launched civil action against the state government and Barwon Prison last year after claiming his human rights had been breached due to the “cruel and inhuman” treatment when he spent more than 24-hour long stints in his cell.

The case will return to court at a later date.