WhatsApp messages of superyacht worker Ethan Davis accused of abducting woman from Bondi Icebergs emerge in court documents
EXCLUSIVE
A worker on a $12 million superyacht allegedly threatened to release a nude video of his former partner to get her to talk to him again before he kidnapped her, court documents show.
Ethan Davis, 23, from the NSW Central Coast, sent more than 200 messages to his ex-partner and colleague after she ended their relationship, prompting him to send her an intimate video of himself and threatening to share it publicly , the NSW Supreme Court heard.
Davis sent his ex-partner 85 messages on the evening of September 5, court documents allege. She replied after he said this would ensure her safety.
After meeting in person and asking if she wanted to spend one last night together, the woman declined before Davis continued the conversation on WhatsApp at 3:45 p.m., where he began, “You’re disappointing me.”
At 7:05 p.m., after ignoring more than 50 messages, Davis warned, “If you want to be safe, I encourage you to reply.”
Ethan Davis, 23, (pictured) from the Central Coast, sent his ex-partner 85 messages in one night, culminating in him threatening to leak an intimate video of her, a court has heard
Details of the charges against Davis and the messages he sent are contained in a police document filed during his bail application. Digital mock-up above
Davis was released on bail on Friday after serving more than two months in custody for allegedly kidnapping the woman and endangering her safety.
During their conversations in early September, he sent more than a dozen one- or two-word messages on WhatsApp demanding she ‘reply’ or ‘record’, the court heard.
“You don’t want any videos or photos being sent anywhere,” he sent at 6:49 p.m.
‘Because I’m very close to that.
“And I think you know exactly which one I’m talking about.
“I’ll let you decide that.”
The messages elicited no response from the woman, who ended their relationship on August 28 after a camping trip to Port Stephens.
Her nude video was then forwarded by Davis, who again warned: “You don’t want this to leak.”
‘I’m telling you. You can answer best.’
The woman responded to the messages at 7:18 p.m. and informed Davis that she had called police, and he asked her several times to call back to discuss the matter.
‘Stop calling or this will continue. I mean it,” she responded.
She said she told a friend what was going on and promised to drop the subject if Davis stopped messaging her.
Davis then sent 26 more messages asking them not to report him to police or tell their boss, which he feared would cost him his job and his house on the yacht.
Details of the charges against Davis and the messages he sent are contained in a police document filed during his bail application.
According to court documents, Davis met the woman in January 2022 when he started working on a superyacht called Oceana, and the two were briefly an item.
The accuser claims that after their relationship ended, he became “obsessive,” stalked her and held her down twice.
Davis, who is facing a wave of abuse allegations, is said to have forwarded the intimate video of herself to his ex-partner and colleague and told her she had to answer for her own safety.
When the woman finally responded and told Davis she would get the police involved if he persisted, he sent a further 26 messages asking him not to tell anyone, the court heard.
Lawyer Raoul Court told the court during Mr Davis’ bail application that his client was concerned about losing his job and his home, which was on the Oceana superyacht.
It is alleged that he was unhappy after their initial relationship ended and that he once waited for her at her car and visited her house.
When their employer was informed of the situation, he stopped work for a period of six weeks.
He is said to have sent a card to her parents’ house saying ‘I love you xx’.
When he returned to work, they resumed their relationship until she broke it off again in mid-August this year.
They later met at Bondi Icebergs in late August and it is claimed she then told him their relationship could not continue.
David reportedly responded by asking who else she was dating, grabbed her phone and asked her to follow him to his car.
According to court documents, when she told him she would scream unless he gave her phone back, he said, “well, scream then.”
She followed him to his car and tried to get the phone back.
Court documents alleged she got into his car but held the door open and began yelling at passersby, prompting him to slam the car and drive away.
He allegedly demanded that she return the jewelry he had bought for her before finally taking her home.
He asked her to “take a blood oath that she would not tell anyone,” according to police charges.
“The victim swore on her parents’ lives that she would not tell anyone,” court documents state.
On the night of September 5 When she left work, Davis dressed in all black and put on black latex gloves and hid near her car, according to court documents.
It is said that when she came close, he said, “Come here. You’re going to get in the car. You’re going to get in the car.’
When she protested, he allegedly grabbed her back as she screamed for help.
He is said to have loosened his grip when a nearby ute stopped, allowing her to run away.
However, he rushed her downstairs, placed his hands over her mouth and told her to “be quiet,” according to the charges.
Police allege he carried her to the car, where he pulled out a knife.
The woman told police he told her to unlock her phone and said, “You’re going to delete the evidence.”
They drove to Manly where he allegedly made her delete all their messages, call logs and screenshots.
He also demanded she take a “blood oath” not to tell anyone, which she did to appease him while the knife was held to her, prosecutors said.
Davis (above) allegedly kidnapped the woman twice and both times threatened her not to tell anyone because he feared it would cost him his job and his home.
“The victim made a small cut on her left index finger with the knife, causing it to bleed,” according to court documents.
They then drove back to the marina and he let her drive home.
The next morning she went to Bondi police station to report the matter.
Later that day, police stopped his car about 50 yards from where the alleged victim’s vehicle was parked.
Police say they found black latex gloves in the center console, as well as black clothing.
According to police, he was also in possession of 0.72 grams of MDMA.
The Wadalba man was charged with a range of offenses including two counts of taking/detaining a person with intent to gain advantage, using a carriage service to threaten/intimidate/offend, using an offensive weapon to commit an offense and two counts of to stalk. intimidate with intent to cause fear/physical harm.
In an affidavit to the court, the officer in charge of the investigation argued that there was “strong evidence” to support the allegations, including “clear CCTV footage of the suspect chasing the terrified complainant and pushing her with a gloved hand through an abandoned parking complex. her mouth’.
Lawyer Raoul Court told the court during Davis’ bail application that he “panicked” because he feared losing his job.
“He was concerned about losing his job and his home, which was on the superyacht,” Court said.
The Oceana superyacht is a charter vessel that can accommodate twelve guests in five cabins and can be booked for $290,000 per week.
Formerly known as Obsession, the 55-foot yacht was built in 1991 and sold to its current owner in 2019 for €7,750,000 (A$12,896,802).
‘He was not concerned about the end of the relationship – this concern was that she would tell the captain, not the police, that their relationship had continued.
“Based on the captain’s information, Davis will lose his job and his home.”
He further argued that the relationship between the couple had existed for almost two years, during which time he had always had respect for the woman.
Mr. Davis was granted bail on conditions amounting to house arrest and on the condition that his family post a $1 million bond.
Mr Davis appeared briefly at Downing Center Local Court on Tuesday.