‘Foolish’ advice Kamahl received before allegedly sending threatening messages to woman over unpaid $2,000 loan
Singer Kamahl had swapped his anxiety medication for herbal remedies when he allegedly sent threatening messages to a woman over an unpaid $2,000 loan, a court has been told.
A magistrate dismissed a harassment charge against the 89-year-old at Sutherland Local Court on Monday, ruling the case should be heard on mental health grounds.
Kandiah Kamalesvaran, better known by his stage name, was charged after he allegedly sent several messages containing a threat to strangle a woman he had previously been friends with.
When the woman was asked to repay the loan, she responded with claims that Kamahl had abused her, prompting the singer to respond as he did, the court was told.
The woman had offered to repay her debt to Kamahl in weekly installments of $5, the court heard, and sent the first payment with the description: “To the molester.”
He then sent the woman a message and called her, among other things, an ‘ungrateful stupid bitch’, the court was told.
“He’s reacting impulsively,” Kamahl’s attorney, Arjun Chhabra, said.
“Then he makes the silly, potentially criminal statement.”
Kamahl (pictured) was charged with harassment after allegedly sending several messages threatening to strangle a woman he had previously been friends with
Mr Chhabra said his client had stopped taking anti-anxiety and depression medication at the time, after being convinced by a friend to rely on herbal injections instead.
“That was downright foolish advice from that acquaintance,” he said.
Kamahl’s daughter arrived in Australia on the day of the allegedly harassing messages and found him and his home in a “disheveled state”, the court was told.
She later restored the singer’s ties with health professionals and took control of his finances, Chhabra said.
Describing the case, Magistrate Paul Lyon said Kamahl had concerns about how he would explain the abuse allegation to his daughter and estranged wife.
Kamahl’s lawyer Bobby Hill told AAP that the singer insisted the abuse allegation was completely unfounded and had been concocted by the woman to avoid having to pay her debts.
“Despite the complainant’s allegation, NSW Police have never charged Kamahl with any sexual offence,” he said after the court ruling.
A magistrate dismissed a harassment charge against the 89-year-old (centre) at Sutherland Local Court on Monday, ruling that the case should be heard on mental health grounds.
Kamahl had also threatened to launch defamation proceedings against the woman over her claim, Mr Hill added.
Mr Lyon imposed a violence order on the singer for a period of two years, banning him from approaching or contacting the woman, a measure agreed to by the parties.
“It is terribly important that people, especially men, when communicating with women… do so in a respectful manner,” the magistrate said.
The Malaysian-born singer rose to prominence with two hit singles in the late 1960s and mid-1970s, as well as his repeat appearances on the long-running variety show Hey Hey It’s Saturday.
In 1994 he was appointed Member of the Order of Australia.
Mr Hill said Kamahl had worked hard over the past six months to get his cognitive and mental health back on track and was keen to put the matter behind him.
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