Rhys Bellinge boasted of ‘superpowered’ car before fatal crash
Obstetrician Rhys Bellinge was recorded calling other drivers cowards while lauding his Jaguar’s power as he hooned through Perth’s suburbs in the weeks before an accident that claimed the life of a 24-year-old woman.
The obstetrician son of a health tycoon boasted of his car’s “superpower” as he hooned through suburban streets of Perth in the days leading up to an accident that claimed the life of a 24-year-old woman.
Appearing in Perth Magistrates Court via audio link from the hospital bed he has been handcuffed to since Saturday night’s crash, Rhys Bellinge could be heard sobbing quietly on Wednesday as Magistrate Clare Cullen decided not to grant him bail.
The prominent obstetrician – whose father Bruce Bellinge is a successful fertility doctor who is married to multi-millionaire Megan Wynne – has been charged with manslaughter over the death of Elizabeth Pearce.
The young student was in an Uber on Saturday night, not far from her parent’s Nedlands home, when Dr Bellinge’s Jaguar slammed into the car she was a passenger in. Dashcam footage showed Dr Bellinge reaching speeds of more than 130km/h in a 50km/h zone in the moments before the accident, and he was later found to have a blood-alcohol content of almost four times the legal limit.
Dr Bellinge had offered up a $1m surety and had committed to enter house arrest at his parent’s sprawling riverfront mansion if he was granted bail.
But it was dashcam footage recorded in the days leading up to Saturday night’s accident that ultimately prompted Magistrate Cullen to remand Dr Bellinge into custody.
That footage, captured earlier this month, showed the doctor repeatedly driving at dangerous speeds through suburban areas. It showed Dr Bellinge’s Jaguar travelling through Perth’s Kings Park – where the speed limit is 40km/h – at speeds of up to 108 km/h. At one point, a car in front of him pulled off to the shoulder to get out of his way.
In other footage, his car briefly crossed into oncoming traffic. Dr Bellinge could be heard calling the other drivers cowards, among language that Magistrate Cullen said was too offensive to repeat.
At one point, the doctor could be heard saying: “This car is amazing, it’s superpowered.”
Dr Bellinge appears to have been on a downward spiral since the breakdown of his marriage in January. He and his wife had been in marriage counselling as recently as February 14 – the day before the fatal accident.
His wife has not yet spoken to police but was scheduled to be interviewed on Wednesday afternoon.
Magistrate Cullen said the force of that earlier dashcam footage was such that she believed the 45-year-old obstetrician posed an unacceptable risk to community safety.
“Given the seriousness of the offence, the strength of the case against you, the allegation that this was not a one-off aberration … your mental health concerns, your possible alcohol use, and that you have been willing to engage in a high level of risk-taking behaviour, I’m not satisfied that you do not present an unacceptable risk to the community,” she said.
Police prosecutors had strongly opposed the bail application.
Prosecutor Sergeant Jamie Somers said the doctor’s actions in the weeks leading up to the accident were such that it was “almost inevitable that Dr Bellinge’s conduct was going to kill someone”.
“The accused clearly held no regard for anyone’s life, including his own,” Sgt Somers said.
He said there were effectively no doubt that Dr Bellinge was responsible for the offending.
“It’s an overwhelming case, it’s incontrovertible, and it’s particularly heinous,” he said.
During the proceedings, Sgt Somers said the wealth available to Dr Bellinge was comparable to the resources of organised criminal syndicates, and increased the risks associated with granting bail.
“That wealth can be utilised to provide opportunity for flight,” Sgt Somers said.
“In this instance, given the fact that the accused is seemingly going to be facing a significant term of imprisonment if convicted, the temptation to utilise that wealth to try to abscond we would say is significant.”
While the Concept Fertility business established by Bruce Bellinge has made Dr Bellinge’s father wealthy in his own right, the bulk of his parents’ wealth comes from his stepmother, Megan Wynne.
Ms Wynne was the founder of disability employment services group APM Human Services International, with Bruce Bellinge providing her with the early stage funding to build and expand the group. APM later listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, making the couple billionaires in the process, but the company suffered a collapse in value last year and was eventually acquired by private equity.
Dr Bellinge’s lawyer Tony Hager told the court that Bruce Bellinge and Ms Wynne would support his client in meeting the proposed bail conditions.
“His family, specifically those with whom he will live, are very concerned about these proceedings generally. They are also very concerned about his health, and not just his physical health,” Mr Hager said.
He also noted that the spinal injury suffered by Dr Bellinge in the accident meant he would require ongoing medical assistance for at least the next month.
His client, he said, needs assistance to shower, dress, and remove his spinal brace and would not be physically capable of driving even if he wanted to.
Magistrate Cullen, however, was unconvinced.
She said the recordings from inside Dr Bellinge’s vehicle gave her cause for concern that he was a risk to the safety and wellbeing of the community at large.
Dr Bellinge, she said, had shown a tendency to have a “disproportional response to emotional upset”.
The 25-year-old driver of the rideshare vehicle – Mohammad Usman – has two broken legs and a broken arm and requires multiple surgeries, but is not in a life-threatening condition.
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