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Ekka · 29th May 2008, 05:25 AM

Bugger me, the guy got off!

Tree fracas: magistrate throws out assault charges against Sahade - National

Quote:

Tree fracas: magistrate throws out assault charges against Sahade

Paul Bibby
May 29, 2008
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ASSAULT charges against the millionaire car wash king Anthony Sahade were dismissed yesterday after a magistrate found that a key witness had given contradictory evidence.

In Sydney's Central Local Court, the magistrate, John McIntosh, found George Palmer had given differing accounts in the witness box.

Mr Sahade was accused of assaulting Mr Palmer, an arborist, who was trying to chop down a tree on a property neighbouring Mr Sahade's in Wolseley Road, Point Piper, last year.

The court heard that Mr Sahade threatened to break Mr Palmer's neck and threw handfuls of rocks at him while Mr Palmer was hanging from the tree.

The magistrate dismissed the charge, saying there was reasonable doubt that the stones had struck Mr Palmer or that he had felt threatened by Mr Sahade.

A second charge, that Mr Sahade had assaulted Mr Palmer's part-time assistant, Andrew Bouchier, by grabbing him at the base of the throat and pushing him repeatedly, was also thrown out.

The magistrate found that Mr Bouchier had given evidence that he was grabbed on the upper chest and not around the throat.

A defence application claiming that the prosecution's case had not been made out was accepted by the magistrate.

Mr Sahade and his team of three lawyers refused to comment to waiting media.

Earlier, a mobile-phone video of part of the incident that was played in court showed Mr Sahade standing on a platform outside his $11.25 million home, throwing handfuls of small rocks from his garden.

The video showed Mr Sahade screaming at Mr Palmer to "get down from the f---ing" tree and warning him: "you keep doing that and you see where the next one is going to land". The video also showed an altercation between Mr Sahade and Mr Bouchier beside Mr Bouchier's vehicle.

Mr McIntosh expressed concern about Mr Palmer's evidence on the final day of the trial, indicating that it had "at times appeared contradictory".

After the hearing Mr Palmer said he was extremely disappointed by the magistrate's decision.

"The fact that I didn't feel threatened shouldn't make any difference," he said.

On questions over the consistency of his evidence, Mr Palmer said that he had been under cross examination by the defence for five hours.