A police officer who had a gun held to his head by a colleague for threatening to spoil the latest Top Gun blockbuster says he has completely lost confidence in the force.
Officer Dominic Gaynor was ordered to do community service after admitting pointing his gun at his younger colleague Morgan Royston and threatening to shoot him at a Sydney police station in May 2022.
A magistrate said on Thursday he was not convinced the 30-year-old was remorseful for his actions, which the victim said left him scared and worried.
Gaynor was on duty behind the reception desk at Day St police station in Chinatown when then-probationary officer Royston started talking about Top Gun: Maverick, which he had seen the night before.
Officer Dominic Gaynor was ordered to do community service after admitting pointing his gun at his junior colleague, Morgan Royston, in May 2022.
The older officer told him not to ruin the movie, to which Mr. Royston replied, “I’ll ruin it for you.”
According to court documents, Gaynor responded, “Don’t ruin the movie, c***.”
Gaynor then threatened to shoot Mr Royston before laughing and unholstering his Glock.
He pointed the gun at the other officer for about five seconds without keeping his finger on the trigger.
Mr Royston, who has since left the NSW Police, said the incident changed his life forever and caused him to lose any trust and admiration he once had for the state police.
“My shift (that day) was initially unremarkable,” he told a hearing for Gaynor’s sentencing at Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court.
“I had no idea that the course of my life would change forever.
“Suddenly I was staring through the front of a loaded police pistol.”
The former officer said he will never forget the “overwhelming shock and fear” he felt when a gun was pointed at his head.
Mr Royston described the months of anxiety and hypervigilance that followed, during which he fell into a deep depression and had frequent nightmares of being shot dead.
He said he was torn between reporting the incident and “not wanting to break the police brotherhood by abusing another colleague.”
According to a police statement provided, Mr Royston froze and did not know what to do before reporting the incident to a supervisory officer about a week later.
“I have completely lost the trust and admiration I had for the NSW Police Force,” Mr Royston told the court.
“I thought I would be safe with my trained colleagues… it has put the permanent fear of harm in my mind.”
According to the NSW Police Manual, which Gaynor accepted he was aware of, police should treat all firearms as if they were loaded and be aware of where the muzzle is pointing at all times.
Mr Gaynor brandished his gun after Mr Royston threatened to spoil the ending of Top Gun 2
Since the incident, Mr Gaynor has resigned from the force and is now a car salesman. His lawyer in the trial said his client was “a remorseful man who made a serious mistake.”
He pleaded guilty to carrying a firearm without regard for the safety of himself or others.
Several other charges against him were dropped, including one charge of common assault and two charges of stalking or harassment.
Defense attorney Chris Micali admitted that Gaynor had misused his weapon, but said he was otherwise a “fantastic” member of the police force.
“This is a remorseful man who made a serious mistake that will cost him dearly,” he said.
Magistrate Michael Maher said Gaynor showed ‘clearly dangerous reckless judgement’ and noted his position as a police officer was ‘at risk’ because of his actions.
While he acknowledged that the suspended officer had taken responsibility for his actions, he remained unconvinced of his remorse.
“I am somewhat wary of his understanding of the real impact he had on his colleague,” he said at Gaynor’s sentencing.
He convicted Gaynor and gave him a two-year community order and two years’ community service.
Mr Maher added that he did not know why the victim was allowed to continue working alongside Gaynor at the same police station after the crime.
“The impact on the victim is great,” he said.