EXCLUSIVE: Shocking alleged road rage attack described by no-nonsense judge as the ‘worst I’ve seen’: Getz driver may never be able to work again after ‘clash’ with Ford Raptor owner
- Ford Raptor driver refused bail over alleged road rage attack
- Seasoned judge says alleged attack ‘worst I’ve seen’
- Alleged victim, 47, ‘may never work again’
A seasoned magistrate has described a brutal alleged road rage attack as the ‘worst’ he has ever seen, as the alleged victim’s family says he may never be able to return to work as a bus driver.
Ford Raptor driver Din Decevic, 34, was refused bail at Sydney’s Bankstown Local Court this week over an alleged incident where he is accused of assaulting Hyundai Getz owner and father-of-two John Totsis, 47, at Belmore on Sunday, May 28.
Decevic was arrested in nearby Lakemba on Monday evening and was refused bail by Magistrate Glenn Walsh, after the court heard he was already on bail for an alleged stalking charge involving another man.
Police are investigating whether an incident may have occurred between Decevic and Mr Totsis at a nearby gym, Belmore Plus Fitness, before Mr Totsis made his way home between 7pm and 7.15pm.
The father of two teenage sons stopped his Hyundai Getz hatchback near the corner of Peel and Bridge streets, Belmore and stepped out of his car, police will allege in court.
A short time later, police allege Mr Decevic parked his Ford Raptor utility behind the Mr Totsis’ Hyundai, exiting the vehicle. Police will allege he then assaulted Mr Totsis, who fell to the ground, and then continued to assault him.
Mr Totsis may never be able to return to his job as a bus driver due to brain seizures he has suffered since the attack, his sister Vicki Totsis said, adding that ‘he has no memory of’ the incident.
Police obtained CCTV from a Peel Street resident which showed this Ford Raptor around the time of an alleged road rage incident which put Mr Totsis in hospital with serious injuries
John Totsis (above with his partner, science teacher Liezl Rubillos) may not be able to resume his job as a bus driver after suffering a brain injury from the alleged road rage attack
The fit and towering 188cm tall Mr Totsis suffered skull fractures and a cerebral haemorrhage when he was allegedly hit from behind and fell to the ground.
Next week, a month after the alleged attack, Mr Totsis will be transferred to a brain injury rehabilitation facility.
Vicki Totsis questioned whether the alleged attack was ‘personal’ and if it may have started during her brother’s late afternoon workout.
She said that a Good Samaritan passing motorist stopped to give her brother CPR at the scene.
Belmore Plus Fitness told Daily Mail Australia they had looked through the gym’s CCTV ‘to pick up any odd body language’ of a possible fight.
However, a spokesperson said Mr Totsis appeared to be having normal conversations and was ‘speaking to a lot of people that afternoon’.
Detectives arrested Mr Decevic after a three-week investigation and he was remanded in custody and formally refused bail.
He was later denied bail in his subsequent release application on Thursday.
Mr Totsis’ partner, high school science teacher Liezl Rubillos, told Daily Mail Australia she was stuck in the Philippines waiting for an Australian visa she had applied for in tandem with Mr Totsis to be processed.
When Vicki Totsis posted a photograph of her stricken and bloodied brother in hospital, Ms Rubillos wrote that she was tortured by images of him in hospital with a fractured skull and swelling of the brain.
Mr Totsis (above in hospital) was allegedly punched by Din Decevic and then aided by a Good Samaritan. He will soon be transferred to a brain injury rehab facility
Mr Totsis’ family have questioned if anything happened before the incident when he trained at Belmore Plus Fitness (above) which has studied its CCTV and found no ‘odd looking body language’
John Totsis (above with Liezl Rubillos) is in hospital with brain injuries after an alleged road rage attack by a 34-year-old man who a magistrate denied bail toon Thursday
‘Praying for your fast recovery my sweetheart. It’s torturing me when I really want to see you, take care of you and be with you in this time of crisis, but I can’t for now. I don’t have yet my visa,’ Ms Rubillos posted on Facebook.
Vicki Totsis said her nephews have been ‘devastated’ by their father’s injuries and the family was now adjusting to the fact he had a long road to recovery.
Mr Decevic’s case will return to court at a later date.
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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk