RESTAURANT BOSS PAYS PRICE OF DISGRACED DOCTOR’S WEB
Restaurateur cops big serve
A TOWNSVILLE businessman with a “misguided” sense of loyalty has narrowly avoided jail time after he tried to convince a woman to withdraw her complaints towards a doctor charged with rape.
Rishi Jay Nand, 40, was sentenced to 10 months’ jail, wholly suspended for two years, for his serious actions of attempting to pervert the course of justice between December 2017 and March 2018.
Nand, who owns Chico Rio Restaurant, was not afforded any leniency by judge Gregory Lynham after he strung out his legal battle for two years and forced the matter to trial.
The father represented himself throughout his legal battle, where he argued he had done nothing wrong and was merely being a good friend to the former doctor, who was banned from the city in 2018.
The doctor, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was charged with 25 offences on March 24, 2018, including eight counts of rape, two counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, four counts of common assault, threatening violence, wilful damage and perverting the course of justice.
One of the rape charges relates to an incident in 2012 where it will be alleged the doctor inserted his fingers into a woman’s vagina while she was in a consultation room at a Townsville medical centre.
The other seven rape charges stem from complaints from another woman.
Townsville District Court heard how Nand became involved in the doctor’s messy web when he asked one of the alleged victims to withdraw her police claims about earlier, less serious offences.
Nand called the alleged victim six times and sent her nine text messages encouraging her to give police false statements.
Judge Lynham said it was unclear whether Nand knew the extent of trouble his friend was in when he intervened before the more serious charges arose.
“It may not be a stretch that he may have been encouraged by (name omitted),” he said.
“He thought he was helping a friend … he even to some degree thought he was helping the complainant.”
Nand’s head remained bowed as he sat in the dock at his sentencing yesterday after a jury found him guilty.
Judge Lynham said Nand’s naivety to legal processes made his self-represented evidence “utterly unconvincing”.
His new defence barrister, Kelly Stone, detailed Nand’s tough upbringing overseas and how he moved to Australia to start a better life in 2012.
He had a young family and owned two businesses, including Brazilian restaurant Chico Rio on Flinders St. Mr Stone said Nand’s $100,000 debt from the purchase of this business, paired with the impact of COVID-19 on the hospitality industry, made it difficult for him to gain legal help.
Judge Lynham’s 10-month sentence put Nand’s visa in limbo.
Convictions were recorded.