TOURNIER TRIED TO MISLEAD POLICE

Caught driving while suspended

A FORMER reality star turned charity founder tried to mislead police after they nabbed him driving with a suspended licence in Torquay.

Heath Tournier, pictured, who once appeared on Big Brother and later founded a charity building houses for homeless youth, pleaded guilty in Geelong Magistrates’ Court yesterday to a charge of driving while suspended.

Officers caught Tournier behind the wheel as he drove along Beach Rd in Torquay about 2am on August 10.

At the time, Tournier’s licence was suspended due to demerit points.

Prosecutor Senior Constable Geoff Lamb said the 34-year-old had initially denied being the driver in the car when questioned by police.

Further details about how Tournier tried to mount the defence remain unclear.

Magistrate Peter Mellas convicted and fined the qualified electrician $400, but made no orders on his licence.

The court appearance is the latest in a series of setbacks for Tournier.

On Christmas Eve, his car and Torquay home were set ablaze in a suspicious fire.

After the Gilbert St blaze, Tournier told the Geelong Advertiser his young family were seconds from being killed.

“I woke up and heard noises, so I jumped up and looked out to see six-foot flames. I’m still having nightmares,” he said at the time.

“Thirty more seconds and we would have been dead.”

Tournier’s life has been riddled with controversy ever since he entered the Big Brother house as an intruder in 2005.

During his time on the show, Tournier was embroiled in an infamous ‘turkey slapping’ incident with a fellow housemate.

In 2009, Tournier was convicted and fined $4500 over a wild pub brawl at the Torquay Hotel, which left a security guard unconscious.

On that occasion, Tournier had also tried to test police evidence, claiming CCTV footage of him involved in the brawl was false. “All of this didn’t happen, mate,” he said during a police interview, which was later played in court.

Before that incident, Tournier had faced court for riotous behaviour in a public place and resisting police.

But it appeared the electrician had turned his life around when he launched The Tournier Foundation in October 2016.

Comedian David Hughes, AFL star Dustin Martin and underworld figure Mick Gatto were all guests at the star-studded launch, which was held in Geelong.

On the foundation’s website, Tournier stated his vision was to end homelessness and provide “life-changing opportunities” to people in need through building and renovating.

In recent years, Tournier has also set up a real estate agency under his own name.