Helix Dentistry principal Steven Lin pleads not guilty to using phone to menace ex partners

A prominent dentist, who boasts hundreds of thousands of social media followers, will face separate hearings after pleading not guilty to allegedly making threats to two women while in the midst of an ‘ice bender’.

A high-profile dentist with nearly 250,000 Instagram followers has pleaded not guilty to allegations he threatened to kill two of his former lovers during an “ice bender”.

Dr Steven Morgan Lin, the principal at Helix Dentistry based on the Central Coast, was arrested in the Illawarra last month and charged with two counts of using a phone to menace and contravening an apprehended domestic violence order.

The Terrigal man fronted Wollongong Local Court for the first time on Thursday and entered pleas of not guilty to all three charges.

Documents tendered during an earlier bail application stated that Lin allegedly called his former girlfriend of 15 months, who he had recently split from, on September 14 and said: “I will kill you. I will hang you and kill you.”

About 20 minutes later Lin allegedly called his ex wife, who is also a principal at the dentistry in Erina and Long Jetty, and threatened to kill her.

Dr Steven Morgan Lin leaves Wollongong Local Court on Thursday. Picture: Elizabeth Pike

“I will slit your throat and rip your head off and hang your body in the garage,” he allegedly said.

The documents stated that Lin was reported to police, who arrested him in the Illawarra, with his former girlfriend telling them he was in the midst of an ice bender.

On that occasion, Magistrate Claire Girotto said Lin had “been spiralling and it appears to be [because of] drugs”.

“He was self medicating because he is so smart by taking meth. He must know as a medical practitioner there’s other treatments,” she said.

The 40-year-old author of The Dental Diet, who also featured in a 2014 TED Talk, did not appear in Wyong Local Court on September 20 for the first mention of other allegations stemming back to September 7, including contravening an apprehended domestic violence order in place to protect his former girlfriend and destroying or damaging her window.

On Thursday, Lin attended court accompanied by Streeton Lawyers’ Aaron Roberts, having previously been represented by Conditsis Lawyers’ Michael Mantaj and Natasha Konic.

Dr Steven Morgan Lin is the principal at Helix Dentistry based in The Central Coast. Picture: Facebook

Mr Roberts entered his client’s not guilty pleas and requested a hearing date be set for early next year.

However, the police prosecutor suggested the court hold two hearings to deal with the separate allegations made by his former girlfriend and ex-wife.

“They are two different complainants, [the allegations] are unrelated, so they probably should be heard separately,” the prosecutor said.

Magistrate Mark Douglass accepted the submissions and ordered the first hearing take place on April 10, followed by a second hearing the next day.

Mr Douglass continued Lin’s bail to live with his parents at Figtree on the condition he report to police three times a week and allow them to inspect his phone when requested.

Lin is yet to make pleas for the charges in Wyong which are listed for next week, ahead of his Wollongong hearing dates in April next year.

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Originally published as Helix Dentistry principal Steven Lin pleads not guilty to using phone to menace ex partners