AFL Demons and Kangaroos star Majak Daw drink-driving charge and fined for driving while suspended

Former AFL star Majak Daw is off the road after being charged with drunk driving.

The 32-year-old, who played for North Melbourne and the Melbourne Demons, appeared in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday after being caught driving with a suspended licence.

While Daw was fired with a $1,000 fine without conviction for the suspension, the court heard he will appear in court again on drunk driving charges.

Footy star Majak Daw is co-parenting his son Hendrix with ex-girlfriend Emily McKay (pictured)

While the circumstances of those charges remain unknown, his attorney John Marquis told the court that Daw may still try to plead not guilty to them.

“They don’t know what’s going to happen with that indictment in terms of a plea or a contest. We’ve asked for full evidence,” he said.

The alleged drunk driving took place in February.

Daw’s license was suspended for loss of penalty points when he was caught behind the wheel in St Kilda East in December 2021.

The court heard that Daw knew full well that his driver’s license was suspended and that he told police he was simply picking up his vehicle.

It is the second time Daw has been charged with driving without a license.

Daw was caught doing the same thing in trendy Chapel Street a month earlier.

He claimed he was unaware that his driver’s license had been suspended for three months on September 23 of that year for exceeding the demerit point limit, claiming that he had moved out some eight months earlier and had not received any notice.

Daw escaped that incident with a $1,200 fine – again without a conviction.

His court appearance comes some five years after a horrific 25m fall from Melbourne’s Bolte Bridge.

Majak Daw signed for the Melbourne Demons in 2021, but now plays in the Northern Football League

The footballer (pictured with ex-girlfriend) has spoken publicly about the mental health issues he has faced throughout his life

The footballer has spoken publicly about the battle for his mental health that he has fought throughout his life.

In December 2018, Daw appeared to be living the dream as a highly paid and admired professional athlete in football-crazy Victoria.

But while he was heavily drunk and after a fight with his then-partner, Emily McKay, he attempted to take his own life by jumping off the Bolte Bridge.

Mr Marquis told the court that Daw remained a mentor to young children and continued to work as an ambassador for the AFL.

“He has always been a role model and ambassador to the community. He is well regarded and well known,” Mr Marquis said Monday.

‘He supervises training sessions and he supervises school children.’

Daw suffered horrific injuries in his fall onto the bridge, breaking his pelvis and back, breaking both hips instantly.

It was thought he might not be able to walk again, but Daw remarkably returned to play for the Kangaroos after a long recovery, before being dropped and joining the Demons in 2021.

Daw had fled his native Sudan during the Second Civil War in 2000 when he was nine years old. He settled in Egypt with his parents and siblings before moving to Melbourne in 2003.

He was recruited by the Kangaroos as a rookie pick in 2010, resulting in international headlines as he was the first Sudanese player in AFL history to be drafted.

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Majak Daw was a rookie draft pick for North Melbourne in 2010 – which was international news given his Sudanese background