Junior Amone, a promising playmaker for St George Illawarra, now faces the daunting possibility of imprisonment following a conviction tied to an altercation last year in Wollongong. The incident accused him of threatening a tradesman with a hammer.
The court hearing on Wednesday found both Junior Amone and his father Talatau Amone guilty of multiple charges, predominantly assault linked to an altercation near their family residence in Warrawong in November of the previous year. As a consequence of the court’s decision, Junior Amone’s professional future is shrouded in uncertainty, prompting the Dragons to put his club activities on indefinite hold.
The club, responding to the verdict, confirmed the suspension of Junior Amone from all club activities, acknowledging the judgement handed down upon their player.
The twenty-one-year-old player is slated to face his sentence proceedings later in the year. The Magistrate in the case, Gabriel Fleming shared her contemplation on Wednesday that the footballer could potentially face imprisonment term.
In initial defence, Junior Amone’s legal representation disputed the accusations, claiming an instance of mistaken identity. The youth was charged with intimidating a tradesman with a hammer at a construction site, which led the latter to plummet from the rooftop he was working on.
The father, Talatau Amone, had pleaded not guilty to charges, including damaging property, intimidation, trespassing with criminal intent, and assault that caused actual physical harm.
For his part, Junior Amone had also denied all damaging property, intimidation and physical assault allegations.
Contrary to their pleas, the court held both father and son guilty of all charges.
It was revealed during the trial that the altercation began when Jai King and Dean West, the tradesmen, got involved in a verbal spat over the parking of a Nissan Navara on a nature strip. They were working on a house opposite the Amone residence.
The court learned of the actions of the father, Talatau, which included breaking the vehicle’s indicator and mirror. At that time, Junior had also climbed atop the vehicle, amidst verbal threats and abuses from his father to the tradesmen.
Consequently, Junior Amone risked further aggression by climbing the roof with a hammer, leading to Mr King leaping to the neighbouring roof in fear. Unfortunately, he fell on his way to safety, suffering severe injuries including a broken hand.
Despite the victim’s description not fully corroborating with Junior Amone’s appearance, Fleming was persuaded by other evidence at the scene, including the young player’s fingerprints on the vehicle, to hold him accountable. This, in conjunction with the CCTV footage exhibiting Junior Amone in attire that resembled the victim’s description earlier that day, contributed to Fleming’s decision.
The verdict clearly impacted Junior Amone as he lowered his head in the courtroom this Wednesday. The rising rugby star, initially suspended under the “no fault” policy of NRL, had been permitted to return and complete the season’s matches. Now, the future of his career remains uncertain as the club has once again suspended him.
Despite the grave circumstance, Amone’s solicitor, Elias Tabchouri, hinted at challenging the verdict. At this juncture, he said, the matter isn’t all settled and they are planning to proceed with further steps.
The court informed that both father and son might face a custodial sentence, which could be executed as full-time imprisonment or community service through a corrections order.
Mr Tabchouri expressed his wish to postpone the sentencing proceedings till later this year so that they can gather more reports. Consequently, the matter will return to trial on December 6.
