One of the men accused of being involved in the kidnapping of cricketing great Stuart MacGill has attacked his credibility in court.
One of the men accused of orchestrating the kidnapping of Stuart MacGill has attacked the reliability of the ex-Test cricketer, describing his story as having “holes and gaps”, a court has been told.
Marino Sotiropoulos hit out at the leg spinning great’s version of events as he was denied bail at Sydney’s Central Local Court on Wednesday.
Mr Sotiropoulos, 47, failed in his bid to be freed after his lawyer argued that the matter wasn’t likely to go to trial until 2023.
His lawyer Nicole Mourad told the court that Mr Sotiropoulos was not involved in the kidnapping of MacGill from outside his Cremorne home on Sydney’s lower north shore in April.
“The prosecution case relies on statements of the victim and we respectfully submit this victim is not a credible witness,” Ms Mourad said.
“His reliability will definitely be a live issue at trial. There are many holes and gaps in what he said in comparison to later versions and statements.”
Police allege Mr MacGill was taken to a Bringelly property in Sydney’s southwest where he was assaulted, threatened with a gun and demands were made for money.
He was allegedly held for an hour before being driven to Belmore, in southwestern Sydney, where he was released.
Six men have been arrested over the alleged plot, including Mr Sotiropoulos, who is the brother of Mr MacGill’s partner Maria O’Meagher.
Police say Mr MacGill was not involved in any illegal activity and he was “purely” a victim.
Police allege Mr MacGill provided an introduction between Mr Sotiropoulos and a figure known only as “Sonny”.
It’s further alleged “Sonny” disappeared before Mr Sotiropoulos and a group of men allegedly pressured Mr MacGill to secure payment for the alleged drug deal gone wrong.
Ms Mourad said there were inconsistencies in Mr MacGill’s version of events given to police.
She told magistrate Margaret Quinn that in one statement Mr MacGill claimed that one of his kidnappers was holding a handgun while he was held captive.
However, she said, in a police walk-through video of the Bringelly property he claimed he wasn’t sure if the firearm was in the pants waistline of one of his kidnappers.
“He changed his version there,” Mr Mourad said.
Mr Sotiropoulos appeared via videolink from Silverwater wearing prison greens, blue latex gloves, a pink vest and face mask.
Prosecutor Adrian Dragicevic opposed bail because Mr Sotiropoulos is facing a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment if found guilty of the most serious charge of supplying a large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug.
Mr Dragicevic told the court that while Mr Sotiropoulos was not involved in the actual kidnapping, his “fingerprints were all over this matter”.
”The allegation is not that the applicant was physically involved in the kidnapping,” Mr Dragicevic said.
“(The crown alleges) he was involved heavily in organising the kidnapping and was aware of what was to take place.”
Ms Mourad said Mr Sotiropoulos was simply trying to “resolve the matter and act as a middle man”.
“It’s my respectful submission that charge is clearly defendable,” she said.
Mr Sotiropoulos offered a $100,000 surety and to live with his mother at Brighton in a bid to receive bail.
However, Ms Quinn described the crown case as “strong”, noting that he must have had “knowledge of some things”, pointing to recorded phone calls.
“The risk cannot be mitigated and therefore cause is not shown and the bail application is refused,” she said.
Mr Sotiropoulos will next appear in court in October.
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
