STATE OF TASMANIA v MINAS ANASTASIOS CASTRISIOS 1 APRIL 2025
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE JAGO J
Minas Castrisios, you have pleaded guilty to one count of wounding. The crime was committed on 25 November 2024 against Harley Stuart-Sawyer. He was then aged 24. You were aged 35. At the time, Mr Stuart-Sawyer was in a relationship with Mollie Davern. You had previously been in a relationship with Ms Davern.
On the day of the crime, the complainant and Ms Davern were travelling in a vehicle. Repairs had to be undertaken in respect to that vehicle. Whilst the repairs were being undertaken, a verbal argument occurred. Ms Davern called her sister to come and collect her. Her sister did that and Ms Davern left the area.
The complainant began walking intending to obtain assistance to repair the vehicle. Whilst walking, he received a text message from Ms Davern’s sister, asking him to return to the area where the vehicle was. He commenced walking back towards the broken-down vehicle.
Shortly before reaching it, he observed Ms Davern’s sister in a vehicle with two unknown males. Immediately behind that vehicle was a second vehicle in which you were travelling. You exited the vehicle, holding a golf stick. You approached the complainant and struck him twice with the golf stick. One of the blows struck the complainant to the elbow. The golf stick broke upon impact. The complainant asked what he had done. You replied by suggesting he had abused Ms Davern. You told him to leave the State, or you would kill him. You then got back in your vehicle and drove away.
The complainant contacted a friend, who transported him to the Northwest Regional Hospital. Upon presentation it was revealed that he had a deep seven-centimetre laceration over the point of his elbow, a multi-part fracture of the elbow, together with extensive gas in the surrounding soft tissue consistent with an open wound. Surgery was necessary. The complainant required an urgent wound wash out, wire fixation of the fracture, closure of the wound and a protective plaster cast was applied. The complainant was hospitalised for two days because of the need for intravenous anti-biotics.
The complainant was subsequently referred to the Royal Hobart Hospital Orthopaedic Outpatient clinic. As of December 2024, his elbow was still swollen and his range of motion remains limited.
You were arrested and interviewed on 28 November 2024. You told police that you had received a phone call from Ms Davern’s sister, claiming that the complainant had abused her. You admitted to police that you went to meet the complainant, taking with you a golf stick, to confront him about his alleged conduct. You admitted exiting your vehicle, walking over to the complainant and striking him twice with the golf stick.
The injury the complainant sustained was significant. It is still not clear whether he will have any residual physical impairment. Moreover, this undoubtedly was a terrifying event for him and on-going psychological effects can be expected.
As noted, you are 35. By way of prior criminal history, there is nothing of relevance in this State, but in Victoria, you were convicted of the crime of intentionally causing injury in 2015. Apparently this related to you assaulting a male who was the new partner of your former girlfriend. It seems interfering in the relationships of your past partners is not entirely uncommon for you.
I am told your relationship with Ms Davern had ended only a few months prior to this incident. You had been in a relationship with her for several years and remained on good terms with her and her family. When her sister called you and claimed that Ms Davern had been treated poorly by the complainant, you reacted and took it upon yourself to “sort the situation out”. Your violence was not inflicted spontaneously. You travelled out there. There was a significant opportunity for you to reflect upon what you intended to do, but clearly you did not. Instead, without even offering the complainant the opportunity to explain what had occurred, you exited the vehicle and delivered two forceful blows. The wound you caused was serious.
I am told you now regret your behaviour. I accept you have pleaded guilty to this matter at a very early stage. That has spared the complainant the trauma of having to give evidence and has facilitated the course of justice.
You have a strong work history. You have been employed as a traffic controller for several years and are well regarded, although you are currently unable to work because of a back injury. You have a herniation of several discs in your lumbar spine, which causes pain and mobility issues.
There is no question that this incident involved serious criminal conduct. You sought out the complainant, taking with you a weapon and intending to cause him fear and intimidation, if not harm. Your act involved vigilantism. You were seeking to extract retribution for what you perceived to be some level of wrongdoing on behalf of the complainant, based purely on what you had been told by someone else. There was no need at all for you to become involved. Conduct of this nature must be condemned, and those responsible for behaving like you did must be punished, to send a very clear message that such conduct will not be tolerated and those who think it is appropriate to take the law into their own hands, will be met with strong responses from the Court.
That said, I accept there are indications that you are capable of being a responsible, productive and law-abiding member of society, and it is in your interests, and the community’s interest, if you are encouraged to return to those positive ways.
I make the following orders. You are convicted of the crime of wounding. You are sentenced to imprisonment for 14 months. That period of imprisonment is wholly suspended on condition that for a period of two years from today, you commit no offence punishable by imprisonment. You should clearly understand that if you breach that condition, then a court must order that you serve that term of imprisonment unless it is unjust.