Geelong domestic violence perpetrators exposed as assaults skyrocket
With more Geelong women turning to police to combat violence at the hands of their current and former partners, local magistrates have told accused men there is no excuse for the “abhorrent” behaviour. SEE THE LIST.
Geelong
Don't miss out on the headlines from Geelong. Followed categories will be added to My News.
More Geelong women than ever are facing abhorrent assaults at the hands of their current and former partners, with the region recording one of the highest numbers of family violence incidents in the state.
In response to a man’s claims that he “loved” the woman the sent a flurry of terrifying and threatening text messages to, Magistrate Ann McGarvie told him firmly: “That’s not love”.
Belmont man Gawchaman Arumuganathan texted his ex-girlfriend to ask her if she was “willing to die” and then showed up at her home while she was not there to cut up photographs of her and her family.
“You want to own her and possess her. You don’t love her. That’s not love. Calling her a c--- and threatening to kill her, that’s not love,” Magistrate Ann McGarvie told him during his sentencing.
Recent crime data revealed Geelong has reported the second highest number of family violence incidents across the state in the 12 months to September 2022, sitting just behind the Casey region.
The data published on the Crime Statistics Agency said Victoria Police received 4346 reports of family violence incidents.
The number of criminal events has climbed over recent years, jumping from the 3278 family violence incidents reported in 2018.
Geelong Family Violence Investigation Unit’s Senior Sergeant Nick Uebergang said teams of detectives and officers were putting known family violence offenders “on notice”.
“If they are caught offending or breaching a family violence order, police will have absolutely no hesitation in bringing them before a court,” Senior Sergeant Uebergang told the Geelong Advertiser.
Countless accused people have faced the Geelong courts in just the last six months alone, ranging from chilling threats over text messages to bloody and brutal assaults behind closed doors.
Ms McGarvie told local man Andrew Cumming that he had a “very low opinion of women” after hearing about the verbal abuse he hurled at his former partner before spitting at her.
“Family violence at its root is really demonstrating disdain and disregard for the partner,” Ms McGarvie said during sentencing.
In sentencing a man for threatening to light his ex-wife and children on fire, Magistrate Franz Holzer said it was a “gross breach” of the standards expected of people in the Geelong community.
“This sort of behaviour is abhorrent, it’s cruel, it’s unnecessary and it’s avoidable,” Mr Holzer told accused man Jasvir Dhillon.
Similarly, Magistrate Jonathan Klestadt told Ocean Grove man Nathan Cooper that the community expects better after hearing of the gruesome assault on his ex-girlfriend.
The court was told Cooper, who pleaded guilty, pushed the woman against a wall, placed his forearm against her neck and told her that if she “makes this hard, I will make your life a living hell”.
“Most people in the community now understands the true seriousness of family violence. It’s become a blight in our community and there’s a general sense of bereavement when it’s committed.
“People are appropriately offended when they hear the details,” Magistrate Klestadt told Cooper in October last year.
Here are some of the faces of Geelong’s domestic violence problem:
ANDREW CUMMING
A Geelong man spat at his former wife in front of their daughters and called her a “crazy Japanese chick” was sentenced last month.
Andrew Cumming, 51, pleaded guilty to unlawful assault after the attack at his Belmont residence in August last year.
Prosecutor Senior Constable Chris Sinfield told the Geelong Magistrates Court that Cumming became verbally abusive towards the victim before he spat at her.
Cumming demanded she leave the home but blocked her from getting into her car, essentially forcing the woman onto the road.
Magistrate Ann McGarvie said he has a “low opinion of women”.
DAMIEN SMITH
A Belmont man choked a woman during a terrifying assault that forced her to flee for her life and then threatened to leak her intimate images and explicit videos online if she did not come back.
An 18-month-old child watched on as Damien Smith, 46, held her mother down on the bed and told the woman he was going to “f------ kill you” during a frightening assault in November 2021.
The Geelong Magistrates Court heard last month that Smith, who pleaded guilty to the assault, shoved the woman into a bedroom in the unit they shared and pushed her onto the bed.
Smith then climbed on top of the woman, put both hands around her neck and squeezed for about 40 seconds.
The woman told police she felt pressure to start to build behind her eyes and struggled to push Smith off her.
JOSHUA FENSLING
A Breakwater man put a woman in a headlock and threw her to the ground in front of their young children after an argument broke out mid-last year over a cigarette.
Joshua Fensling, 39, appeared in the Geelong Magistrates Court in October 2022 and pleaded guilty to assaulting his former partner in her Norlane home in front of two of their children.
Fensling grabbed the woman in a headlock, put his arms around her throat and threw her to the ground.
The woman said she curled up out of fear more violence would come.
Defence lawyer Hollie Lyons said he “just snapped”.
COREY SMITH
A Norlane man threatened to take away his young daughter and “kill her” before launching a terrifying assault on her mother.
The woman rushed to their daughter’s aid when she saw that Corey Smith put the young child in his car and was trying to drive away.
The 27-year-old got out of the car and grabbed her by the neck.
He threw her to the ground and spat on her clothes and face before telling her she was a “dog for calling the police”.
Smith, who pleaded guilty in the Geelong Magistrates Court in October last year, then punched the woman in the stomach.
DYLAN VETRONE
A Geelong man told the mother of his children “don’t think I won’t kill you” while he held he down and assaulted her.
After a birthday party for their young child in March this year, Dylan Vetrone pinned his ex-girlfriend down, drove his right elbow into her neck and put a hand over her mouth and nose.
When the woman was able to escape from his hold, Vetrone pushed her out of the house and smashed her phone.
Vetrone pleaded guilty to the assault charges in the Geelong Magistrates Court in December 2022.
The court heard Vetrone, 27, had previously assaulted the woman, with the first assault occurring in May 2018 after he smashed an upstairs window of her home and demanded to be let in.
SAURAV SETHIA
A man’s vicious and “abhorrent” attack of his Geelong girlfriend over pictures of an escort on his phone could have ended in jail and deportation back to India, a court heard in September last year.
Saurav Sethia, 23, who now lives in Melbourne but has been linked to Waurn Ponds, faced the Geelong Magistrates Court and pleaded guilty to false imprisonment and assault charges.
In April 2022, Sethia got into a “heated argument” with his now ex-girlfriend over pictures of escorts she found on his phone.
Sethia grabbed her throat and squeezed for about six seconds.
The victim said she feared for her life and attempted to push Sethia away from her but he only “tightened his hands around her throat”.
TIM DAWKINS
A Geelong man violently attacked a woman with a pair of scissors after she refused to buy him drugs, a court heard late last year.
Tim Dawkins, 31, pleaded guilty to assault and criminal damage charges in the Geelong Magistrates Court in September for the brutal assault of his ex-girlfriend over the drug dispute.
Dawkins pushed the woman against a bedroom wall and held her there while he pressed a pair of scissors against her throat.
The woman told police Dawkins pushed the scissors deeper into her skin every time she moved, causing a laceration.
The next morning, the victim attempted to flee from Dawkins but he caught her at the mailbox and dragged her back inside.
DANIEL BONE
A Norlane man strangled a woman “almost to the point of death” during a brutal assault, a court was told in September last year.
Daniel Bone appeared at the Geelong Magistrates Court and pleaded guilty to assault, driving and drug charges.
In April 2020, Bone and a woman began arguing in his Norlane home when he grabbed her throat and squeezed.
During the altercation, Bone swung the victim towards a door frame, punched he in the face and punched her in the ribcage.
At one point, Bone stood over the woman and verbally abused her.
JASVIR DHILLON
A man with a long history of family violence threatened to set his wife and four children on fire, a court heard in August 2022.
Jasvir Dhillon, 50, who has since moved to Melbourne but was linked to Corio at the time of the offences, faced the Geelong Magistrates Court and pleaded guilty to driving and threat to kill charges.
In April 2019, Dhillon was driving his wife’s truck when he asked the woman where police were and told her she was not afraid of them.
Dhillon told his now former wife he was going to set the truck on fire and then threatened to set her and her four kids alight.
Dhillon’s daughter made a desperate plea to the court.
JAMAL THORPE
A Thomson man locked a woman inside his unit and punched her several times after she tried to end their relationship.
Jamal Thorpe pleaded guilty in the Geelong Magistrates Court to car theft, using carriage service to harass and unlawful assault.
In November last year, Thorpe let a woman into his Thomson unit so she could collect her belongings after their relationship broke down.
Thorpe, who locked the door behind the woman, begged her to stay and talk about their relationship.
When she told him she was not interested, he grabbed her and punched her to the head twice with a closed fist.
More Coverage
Originally published as Geelong domestic violence perpetrators exposed as assaults skyrocket
Ex-AFL player joins Bellarine as GFNL club lands rival ball-magnet
It is mixed news for a GFNL contender, losing a former AFL player but landing one of the top midfielders in the competition from a rival club.
‘I’m not joking’: Chilling voice message before house burnt down
A convicted robber left a disturbing message on a woman’s phone when she failed to return his car on time. Moments later, her house was destroyed.