In short
The man who stole international tennis star Nick Kyrgios’s Tesla, holding his mother at gunpoint, has been sentenced to more than four years’ jail in the ACT Supreme Court.
A psychiatrist told the court the offender was experiencing drug-induced psychosis at the time, believing he could communicate with billionaire Elon Musk about microchips and vaccines through a Tesla.
What’s next?
His sentence was backdated to include time already served, with a non-parole period of two years and 11 months.
The man who stole international tennis star Nick Kyrgios’s green Tesla at gunpoint has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years’ jail in the ACT Supreme Court.
In March, the 33-year-old Canberra man pleaded guilty to offences including robbery with an offensive weapon.
The dramatic theft hit the headlines in May last year after the bright green Tesla was pursued by police through Canberra’s suburbs.
The saga began when Nick Kyrgios’s mother, Norlaila Kyrgios, heard a knock at the door.
When she asked who it was, she heard someone say “it’s Chris”.
But when Mrs Kyrgios partially opened the door, she was confronted by a long barrel firearm, held by a man wearing a black mask over the lower part of his face.
The man used the gun to force the door open and demanded Mrs Kyrgios give him the keys to “the car”, as he indicated the Tesla.
Mrs Kyrgios handed over the keys and the man then demanded she show him how to drive it, forcing her towards the car at gunpoint.
When he went to sit in the driver’s seat, Mrs Kyrgios ran to raise the alarm and the man fled in the car.
Nick Kyrgios then used an app on his phone to control the speed of the car, and helped police track it as they chased the car through nearby suburbs.
At one point the car was stopped and police swooped on it, with guns drawn, before the man accelerated away, pursued by police with lights and sirens.
Eventually the man was caught and charged.
Court hears of Kyrgios family trauma
In her victim impact statement to the court Norlaila Kyrgios said she had been consumed by “trauma and fear” since the incident.
Nick Kyrgios also said he was upset by the events.
“I am incredibly angry at what the defendants have done to my family,” Mr Kyrgios said.
“[I] hope they understand the pain, anxiety and trauma they have caused us.”
During sentencing the man apologised for the trauma he’d caused.
Halimah Kyrgios, Norlaila Kyrgios’s daughter and sister of Nick Kyrgios, watched the sentencing from the court’s public gallery.
Outside the court, Ms Kyrgios said she thought the sentence would bring “a moment of peace of mind for my mum”.
“We’ve always learnt to forgive, but I think personally just for the safety of the community this was dealt with the right way,” Ms Kyrgios said.
Offender experiencing drug-induced psychosis during robbery
Acting Justice Rebecca Christensen said a psychiatrist had given evidence that the offender was experiencing drug-induced psychosis when he stole Mr Kyrgios’s Tesla.
The court heard the offender believed at the time he could communicate with billionaire Elon Musk about microchips and vaccines through a Tesla.
The man sought to be sentenced to a drug and alcohol treatment order, but Acting Justice Christensen found the matter was too serious for that to be ordered.
“[The drug and alcohol order regime] is not a panacea for all offenders,” she said.
The man sentenced for the theft is the same person who hit and killed 21-year-old Canberra woman Clea Rose in 2005, who died three weeks after the hit and run.
The man, who was 14 at the time, pleaded guilty to culpable driving causing death and was sentenced to 18 months in a youth detention centre.
For the robbery Acting Justice Christensen sentenced the man to four years and six months in jail, backdated to include time already served.
With a non-parole period of two years and 11 months, he won’t be eligible to be considered for release until 31 March 2026.