NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / World

Melbourne horror crash: Mortgage broker Richard Pusey's bail hearing reveals extensive criminal past

news.com.au
12 May, 2020 12:46 AM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Victoria Police have charged Richard Pusey after he allegedly fled the scene of a fatal crash that killed four police officers.

Victoria Police have charged Richard Pusey after he allegedly fled the scene of a fatal crash that killed four police officers.

Long before Porsche driver Richard Pusey was accused of filming dying police, the 41-year-old was on their radar. This is his "disturbing" past.

Melbourne mortgage broker Richard Pusey's bid for freedom has dredged up an extensive criminal history which police say paints a picture of a man who takes a "disturbing pleasure at causing other people fear and discomfort".

Pusey, 41, sat in the dock at Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Monday wearing a face mask and gloves and listened as police detailed a string of incidents during his bail hearing.

He is accused of filming and berating dying police and fleeing the scene of a deadly crash last month on Melbourne's Eastern Freeway that killed four officers.

But Detective Senior Constable Aaron Price from the Homicide Squad spent more than 30 minutes in court delving into his past.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

In 2008, Pusey was jailed for nine months but had his sentence suspended for assaulting his girlfriend, the court heard.

In 2018, he was convicted of reckless conduct endangering injury when he tried to blow up a Fitzroy pub because staff asked him to leave.

Price said an intoxicated Pusey removed a gas bottle from an outside heater, opened the valve and placed it inside the venue.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

In 2019, during a Tiger Airways flight from Melbourne to Brisbane, Pusey filmed flight crew and called one member a "fat cow". He was physically removed and convicted of public nuisance.

Pusey was also placed on a good behaviour bond for stalking in 2018, fined for using a carriage service to menace and hauled back before the courts for a road rage incident that allegedly saw him remove the keys from another car's ignition and drive away with them.

Price said Pusey once placed a "threatening" phone call to a Westpac employee in which he named her young daughter despite never being given her details.

He also cited a threat Pusey allegedly made to an employee from a debt collection agency. In a voicemail message, the 41-year-old told her he would write the company logo on a car and "drive it down Bourke Street". Police say the reference was to killer James Gargasoulas' 2017 rampage that killed six people including children.

Discover more

World

Melbourne freeway tragedy: Porsche driver's 'abhorrent' three-minute video

11 May 04:32 AM
World

140km/h on meth: NZ woman who killed motorcyclist jailed for life

13 May 09:38 PM
New Zealand

West Auckland homicide: Police speaking to people at house where woman found dead

14 May 02:27 AM
World

Melbourne freeway tragedy: Porsche driver sells home from prison

09 Jun 04:14 AM

"The accused appears to take a disturbing pleasure at causing other people fear and discomfort," Price said.

In opposing bail, police also laid bare Pusey's driving history. They alleged that before he was pulled over on April 22 for allegedly driving at 149km/h in a 100km/h zone, Pusey bragged to friends about speeding on the same stretch of road.

"I did 275 first then when I returned I took us to 300," Price alleged Pusey said. "It will do 350 and it's coming."

Price said Pusey represents a flight risk and has a history which "indicates he doesn't like to be held to account for what he does"

"He has a flagrant disregard for orders made by the court," he said.

During the three-hour bail hearing, which was adjourned until Thursday, disturbing new details emerged about Pusey's actions after a truck hit the four officers last month.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The court heard that as Leading Senior Constable Lynette Taylor lay on the side of the road groaning, Pusey recorded a three-minute video and "zoomed in" on her.

He told her he just wanted to go home and eat sushi but "now you've f***ed my f***ing car", the court heard.

"There is certainly evidence to say one of the officers was alive [during filming]," Price told the court.

"He filmed in a calm manner. There's no evidence of shock in his comments."

But Pusey's lawyer argued his client was in shock and is still suffering the effects of what he saw.

"A collision has occurred in the most horrendous of circumstances. It's difficult to conceive of anything good about it," Vincent Peters told the court.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"He witnessed it. It happened in front of him.

"He is very much in need of ongoing psychological treatment."

On the night of the crash, Pusey sent an email to a Victorian police officer explaining what he had seen.

"I feel very unwell as what I saw was horrific," he wrote. "I went to the doctors and he asked me to see him in the morning. Three males died instantly. [Senior Constable Taylor] was in a state of shock. She was a nice lady. There was a doctor at the scene within seconds. I was behind the steel barrier just moments before the truck came through. I have to sleep now as my head is fuzzy."

The truck, driven by Mohinder Singh, killed Taylor and her colleagues, Senior Constable Kevin King, Constable Glen Humphris and Constable Josh Prestney.

Pusey allegedly grabbed items from his Porsche 911 which had been crushed by the truck. The items included two mobile phones and a bag that police allege contained drugs.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

As people stopped on the side of the Eastern Freeway to offer help, Pusey asked for a lift. He allegedly told a witness, "That's my f***ing car, mate."

Pusey is facing charges including driving at a dangerous speed, reckless conduct endangering life, failing to render assistance, destruction of evidence, drug possession, failing to remain after a drug test and committing an indictable offence while on bail.

Yesterday he received three new charges, including two counts of perverting the course of justice and one count relating to drug offences.

Magistrate Joanne Metcalf told lawyers she needed until Thursday to make a decision on whether or not to grant Pusey bail.

Among her considerations is the length of time Pusey could spend on remand before a potential trial. Peters argued that given coronavirus restrictions, the court may not be able to deal with Pusey's matter until 2022.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from World

live
World

Trump warns Iran against retaliation after US strikes

22 Jun 04:17 AM
World

Kiwi man charged after cocaine blocks found in suitcase at Sydney Airport

22 Jun 04:16 AM
World

Defence Minister Judith Collins and Foreign Minister Winston Peters on US bombing of Iran

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from World

Trump warns Iran against retaliation after US strikes
live

Trump warns Iran against retaliation after US strikes

22 Jun 04:17 AM

Trump says US dropped 'full payload of bombs' on Iran's Fordow nuclear site.

Kiwi man charged after cocaine blocks found in suitcase at Sydney Airport

Kiwi man charged after cocaine blocks found in suitcase at Sydney Airport

22 Jun 04:16 AM
Defence Minister Judith Collins and Foreign Minister Winston Peters on US bombing of Iran

Defence Minister Judith Collins and Foreign Minister Winston Peters on US bombing of Iran

President Trump makes announcement following Iran bombings

President Trump makes announcement following Iran bombings

Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP