Ex-Home and Away star Felix Dean sentenced over assault and intimidation of friend’s dad
A former TV star who previously attacked an Uber driver, cop and tobacconist worker has added a friend’s dad to his assault victims.
A troubled former Home and Away star assaulted and intimidated a friend’s parent in the most recent run-in with the law that followed a steep fall from childhood stardom.
Felix Dean was sentenced to prison in Waverley Local Court on Tuesday for common assault, after he grabbed hold of his friend’s dad’s arm on the street and demanded $300.
He was also sentenced for breaching community correction orders given for kicking a police officer during the Covid lockdown and stealing an iPhone from a store worker.
But he will not face any further jail time due to the backdating of sentences and discounts given for mental health struggles and a deprived background.
The court heard of Dean’s descent into drug addiction – which started while he played the part of “VJ” in Channel 7’s Home and Away from 2007 to 2010.
Balancing his attendance at multiple esteemed schools, Dean excelled in his performance as the on-screen son of Ada Nicodemou, who played main character Leah Patterson-Baker.
He was nominated for Best Young Actor at the 2008 and 2009 Inside Soap Awards.
Although he was kicking career goals at an impressively early age, the court heard the young promising actor was already battling drug addiction behind the scenes.
Reading from a psychological report, Magistrate Ross Hudson said Dean had a “significant acting career between the ages of 8 and 16, and at that time, even with his acting career, he struggled with addictions and his mental health”.
“He has been using prohibited substances from the age of 15”.
Magistrate Hudson said Dean struggled with major depressive order, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and drug-induced psychosis.
The court heard his most recent offending was committed in breach of parole and several community correction orders.
On October 21 last year, Dean had been out of prison for a matter of months and was homeless when he saw a man he knew standing on an alleyway off Oxford St in Central Sydney.
Reading from agreed facts, Magistrate Hudson said Dean had known the man, whose son he went to school with, for 11 years.
This moment was the culmination of two-to-three years of conflict.
“The accused approached the victim from behind, yelling at him – the victim recognised him,” Magistrate Hudson said.
“The accused inquired about the whereabouts (of his son) … (and) told him (his son) owed him $300 for an undisclosed reason. The accused seemed agitated and demanded the victim give him money”.
The court heard that after the victim refused to give Dean money, Dean grabbed hold of his arms and stood in front of him, saying “you need to give me money now”.
After the victim threatened to call police – whom he later told he was anxious about being harmed by Dean – the former childhood star left the scene.
Magistrate Hudson said Dean’s criminal record “escalated to a point of custody, he’s on paroles, CCOs, conditional liberties and again he goes out and commits, notwithstanding the lesser degree of violence, further violence”.
“I note an explanation given in an apology letter to court, Dean says ‘it is not lost on me that my actions have caused great deal of pain to my family’. I was homeless, drunk all time, living a chaotic lifestyle, addicted to methamphetamine’. He says he recognises the need to change path he’s on”.
Dean pleaded guilty to common assault on November 22 last year and not guilty to one stalking and/or intimidation charge on the same date, but since changed that plea after a dispute about facts was resolved.
For the assault charge, Magistrate Hudson sentenced Dean to 11 months imprisonment with a non-parole period of five months, backdated five months for time already spent in prison.
The non-parole period had been discounted due to Magistrate Hudson finding special circumstances in regards to his mental health and deprived background, making him eligible for parole as of April 13 this year and allowing him to be released from prison immediately.
For the stalk and/or intimidate charge, Dean was handed an 18-month community correction order (CCO), where he will be subject to good behaviour conditions as well as drug and alcohol rehabilitation.
Appearing via video link from custody, Dean put his head in his hands and appeared relieved when Magistrate Hudson said he could be released on parole to the home of his mother, who was in court to support him.
In regards to another count of assaulting a police officer, in which he kicked the officer after being escorted out of a friend’s house during the Covid lockdown, Magistrate Hudson revoked a previous CCO and handed him a two-month prison sentence, which expired on January 13.
Magistrate Hudson took no action in relation to Dean’s breach of a CCO he received for stealing a grey iPhone from a tobacconist on October 11, 2021.
During that incident, Dean also punched the male employee in the face and later pleaded guilty to assault.
In January last year, Dean was sentenced 19 months imprisonment with a non-parole period of 11 months for a string of violent offences — a punishment backdated to July 11, 2021 and making him eligible for parole on June 10 last year. Dean had also pleaded guilty to assaulting an Uber driver on his way to pick up a customer.
Addressing Dean on Tuesday, Magistrate Hudson said: “The mental health (issues are) there, you can’t deny it. You won’t get on top of things. You need to get rid of drugs from your life. (If you do), the feelings you’re trying to numb with drugs won’t necessarily be there”.