Talatau Junior Amone: Footy star who narrowly avoided jail after attacking a tradie with a hammer gets locked up after allegedly committing disgusting act against a woman
- Former St George Illawarra NRL star spent night behind bars
- Was arrested on Sunday in Warrawong on the NSW south coast
Former NRL player Talatau ‘Junior’ Amone was in custody on Sunday night after being charged with common assault after allegedly spitting at a woman in a Wollongong pub.
Mr Amone, 22, was arrested on Sunday and charged with simple assault.
The police refused to grant him bail and he spent the night in custody.
Police began investigating reports of an alleged assault earlier that day at a pub on Keira St, Wollongong on Sunday afternoon.
It is alleged that at around 2am, Mr Amone got into an argument with a woman, after which he spat at her.
According to the police, the woman was an acquaintance of Mr. Amone.
Mr Amone was arrested at a home in Warrawong at around 6.15pm on Sunday and taken to Wollongong Police Station, where he was charged but denied bail.
The former St George Illawarra playmaker is due to appear in Wollongong District Court on Monday.
Talatau Amone (pictured during a court hearing in June) has found himself in more trouble with police after allegedly spitting at a woman in a Wollongong pub
The former Dragons star avoided jail in December last year after being convicted of an attack in which he armed himself with a hammer and chased a tradesman off a roof
He avoided jail in December last year after being found guilty of arming himself with a hammer and chasing a tradesman off a roof during a heated argument.
Amone and his father Talatau Amone were found guilty in the Wollongong District Court in October of a series of charges including assault in connection with an incident outside their family home in Warrawong in November 2022.
Talatau Amone pleaded not guilty to damaging property, intimidation, entering a building or grounds with intent to commit a criminal offence and assault with intent to cause actual bodily harm.
Judge Gabriel Fleming described the pair’s behaviour as “appalling” and sentenced the father and son separately for their roles during the heated confrontation.
Junior Amone was sentenced to a two-year Intensive Corrections Order, a prison sentence to be served in the community.
Ms Fleming called the NRL player’s behaviour “appalling”.
Amone (pictured centre, outside court in December last year) was sentenced to a two-year Intensive Corrections Order for the hammer attack
“You armed yourself with a hammer, the victims were vulnerable, the victim was on a roof and had nowhere to go,” she said.
Ms Fleming told the court it was a “tragedy” that the conviction would impact the 21-year-old’s sporting career and finances as he supports his family in Australia and overseas.
“I think it’s tragic that this can jeopardize your entire future in the profession that you love,” she said.
“It’s your tragedy, not mine.”
Both men were each fined $1,000 for damaging a car and must each pay $13,481 in restitution.
At the end of 2023, Amone’s $500,000-a-year contract with the Dragons was torn up and he was struck off the NRL register indefinitely.