Sydney influencer and café owner found guilty of intimidation
Lucas Azzopardi, a Sydney influencer and café owner who sent a woman texts threatening to post her nude images online and leak false stories about her to the media, faced Waverley Local Court on Wednesday.
Azzopardi who owns NU Healthy Cafe in Bondi, was charged with threatening to record and distribute intimate images, and intimidation.
Having plead guilty in May, he issues a plea to get a third charge dealt with and finalised.
The court was told the messages began on 19 February when Azzopardi sent numerous texts and told the woman he had posted a nude image of her on his Instagram story.
She asked a friend to check Azzopardi’s Instagram but there was no nude image to be found.
The next day he threatened to release other intimate images that she had sent him as well as leak fake stories claiming she was an escort.
Defence lawyer Ahmed Dib told the court that Azzopardi behaviour was “absolutely foolish”.
When the woman threatened to go to the police, Azzopardi replied: “Enjoy getting f**ked then … my phone might get lost, or I can send it around.”
The woman responded with “you’re an idiot”
“You even writing that is evidence.”
Azzopardi responded with: “And not actually post it … it’s not illegal if I show my mates.”
“Do you realise how dumb you are,” she responded.
Azzopardi’s lawyer told the court his client had come to realise “how ridiculous” his behaviour was. In a letter presented to court, he admitted he should never have “made someone feel this way”.
Azzopardi was supposed to be on good behaviour as he was on a community corrections order at the time of the offence for supplying steroids.
He was sentenced to a 12-month intensive corrections order to be served in the community.
Irit Jackson, 14th July 2022
