By Cameron Houston and Chris Vedelago
A Melbourne restaurateur has been granted an interim intervention order against underworld figure Mick Gatto after taking the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the former heavyweight boxer turned industrial mediator.
Jamal Mohammad, 61, filed 10 charges in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court in late February, in which he made a series of explosive but unsubstantiated allegations against Gatto, some of which date back 25 years.
Mick Gatto attends a state memorial service for Shane Warne in 2022.Credit: Eddie Jim
Correspondence from the Office of Public Prosecutions reveal that director Kerri Judd has the authority to take over a public prosecution and has asked Mohammad to provide “copies of any sworn statements, documents, transcripts, photographs and any other evidence he intends to rely on to prove the charges”.
“If the director decides to take over the prosecution, this office will not take instructions from you. The OPP takes instructions from the Director of Public Prosecutions (or her delegate), not private citizens,” the Office of Public Prosecutions said in a letter on February 29.
The case is listed for a mention hearing on April 15, but the Office of Public Prosecutions has informed Mohammad the office will not be appearing in court.
Victoria Police said it has had no involvement in the charges against Gatto and has not investigated Mohammad’s allegations.
Jamal Mohammad has been granted an interim intervention order against Mick Gatto.Credit: A Current Affair
Interim intervention orders can be made at short notice and do not require a high standard of evidence. They are made temporarily while the court decides whether there is sufficient evidence to grant a final order.
The Age does not suggest that the allegations in relation to the private prosecution or interim intervention order issues are true. It is unclear what evidence Mohammad has to substantiate his allegations, the details of which this masthead has decided not to publish.
Gatto declined to discuss the private prosecution or the interim intervention order when contacted for comment on Tuesday morning.
Mohammad, who also uses the name Jamal Khan, was embroiled in a bitter feud with Gatto last year, when the pair traded insults and threats on social media. In one exchange, Mohammad posted a TikTok video in which he branded the former Carlton Crew boss a “weak dog”.
“You owe me money, you piece of shit. You didn’t turn up after I invite you, you run away ... I’m looking for you, I’m f---ing looking for you everywhere ... you take money from weak people, now I’ll f---ing take it from you,” Mohammad said in the 50-second video.
Gatto responded by sending a 1000-word screed to friends and business associates in which he referred to Mohammad as “king maggot”.
“You make all these threats and ultimatums. I, Mick Gatto, in my nearly 70 years on this planet, I have never met a lower human being than you,” Gatto said in an SMS on July 20.
“If you come near my friends or family, you will be dealt with, you rat ... I hate you with a passion for what you are trying to do.”
Last September, Mohammad was interviewed by detectives from the Viper taskforce after two guns and ammunition were found at his Beaumaris home.
The restaurateur has not been charged and emphatically denied owning any guns, and The Age does not suggest the firearms were his. He claimed they were planted inside a 4WD vehicle parked outside his home.
Mohammad was granted the interim intervention order against Gatto in the Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court last week. The order prohibits Gatto from publishing anything about Mohammad or going within 200 metres of his property, according to the temporary order granted on March 25.
He was also granted an interim intervention order against Adam Wright, the owner of a Melbourne-based security company.
Gatto appears with boxer Anthony Mundine at a promotional event in 2014.Credit: Getty
But Wright, who declined to comment when contacted by this masthead, has also been granted an interim intervention order against Mohammad.
Another intervention order against Mohammad has been granted to Gatto’s business associate, Anthony Swords, who claims Mohammad has been harassing him over his involvement with Gatto’s charity, Equal Access for Autism.
The order requires Mohammad to “hand any firearms in [his] possession to police immediately”.
Mohammad said the intervention orders could be contested in the Wodonga Magistrates Court on April 22. The restaurateur and former security guard insisted he would proceed with the private prosecution of Gatto and claims he has evidence to support his case.
“I have text messages to prove what I’m saying … it took me six months to put all the evidence in the Magistrates Court,” Mohammad said.
He claims he is owed $4 million by Gatto, but did not explain the background of the alleged debt. “I have known Gatto for 15 or 20 years. I am not going to back down and all I can say is I will see him in court and get justice,” he said.
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