Abusive agent keys car

Man faces court over damages and separate assault

AN aspiring Geelong real estate agent keyed the side of a man’s car and verbally abused him, telling his victim to “go back to India”.

Curlewis man Tarn Tromans (pictured) appeared before the Geelong Magistrates Court and entered a plea of guilty to charges of causing $1000 worth of damage to the man’s car with his keys and later assaulting an elderly man.

The first of the offences took place in February 2020 after Tromans parked in a loading zone outside a Chemist Warehouse in Geelong’s

city centre.

His victim, who needed to access the loading zone, waited behind the accused’s car before he returned. When he did, he wound down his window to tell the man that he was not allowed to park his car in the loading zone.

Tromans approached the driver’s window and started to verbally abuse him. During this, police submitted that he had told the victim to “f--k off and go back to India”.

Although there was no specific mention of the racist comment to police, Tromans’ defence lawyer said he admitted to telling the man “to go home”.

He then made a fist and raised it at the man, “causing the victim to fear that he was going to be punched”, police submitted.

The court heard Tromans then scratched the side of the vehicle with his keys.

During the second incident, Tromans was said to have become verbally abusive with an elderly couple in his home in Curlewis before pursuing a man, who the court heard was in his 70s, outside as he tried to leave. When the argument escalated, he was said to have stalked towards the elderly man, grabbed him by the ears and threw him to the ground. When the man attempted to stand up, he was again pushed to the ground.

The elderly man told police he put his hands up in an attempt to stop Tromans but it did not dissuade him. He reported receiving small scratches. Tromans claimed to police later that he attacked the man in self-defence.

His defence lawyer told the court that Tromans, who has recently started a career in real estate across Geelong, has significant anger management issues and “poor decisions get the best of him”.

“The reaction is completely out of proportion to the incident,” his lawyer said.

Tromans will be assessed for a community corrections order and will return to the Geelong Magistrates Court for sentencing.