Latest news with #menacing
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Bombshell twist as police charge the estranged husband of Mark Latham's porn star ex
The ex-husband of Mark Latham's former partner has been charged with harassment and menacing behaviour just days after he said he had nothing to do with his ex-wife. Ross Matthews was due to appear in Sydney 's Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday to face a charge of 'using a carriage service to menace/harass/offend'. The charge is believed to relate to Latham's porn star ex, Nathalie Matthews. Further details are expected to be revealed in court later today. Ms Matthews has also applied to the court for an apprehended violence (AVO) restraining order to be taken out for her protection against him. The legal twist comes just a week after Matthews insisted he no longer had anything to do with his former wife since their split three years ago. Matthews spoke out after Ms Matthews accused Latham of 'a sustained pattern' of psychological, financial and emotional abuse during their relationship. 'Please stop messaging me,' Ross Matthews posted on X after the scandal erupted. 'I don't speak to Nathalie and do not care. Thank you.' The Matthews married in 2018 but the marriage reportedly ended in 2022, before Ms Matthews began dating former federal Labor Party leader, Latham. Ms Matthews now also has a separate AVO application in court against Latham. She claimed Latham proposed to her during their affair - but he has dismissed the relationship as just a 'situationship', despite explicit texts to her also now emerging. 'The big news is I had a private life. I had a sex life and I've got to say it was fantastic,' he said on Wednesday. UK-born Mr Matthews had previously posted proudly about his marriage to his former wife on social media. 'Six months since I woke up with a killer hangover and still managed to make the best decision I have ever made!' he wrote in the wake of their wedding. In another post he added: 'Happy one year! I cannot believe how fast a year can go! 'I would be lying if I said it's been the best year of my life - in fact it's easily been the worst but it is in bad times that picking the right life partner is of the most importance! 'I just could not imagine doing life without you, love you always and here's to many years to come!' It's understood the pair, who were living in Cronulla in Sydney's south, were both Liberal Party members, and Ms Matthews stood as a candidate at the 2021 Sutherland Shire Council election. On Wednesday, Latham alleged the couple were still actually married while he was seeing Ms Matthews. 'Now The Australian is 'reporting' that I proposed to Nathalie Matthews in May last year,' he posted to X. 'They missed the joke: she was still married to Ross Matthews, and maybe still is to this day.' The former Labor leader has categorically denied he 'abuses women' and insisted all his dealings with Ms Matthews were entirely consensual. In an interview with Chris Smith on 2SM, he did not deny sending lurid texts to Ms Matthews from the floor of state parliament. But he added: 'If I'm the only person in Australia who in a work environment engaged in a bit of playful sex talk with their partner, then I'll buy everyone a lottery ticket tomorrow.' He said the AVO case against him was being brought privately after NSW Police chose to not pursue the allegations. 'There is a court case pending because she's lodged a private AVO application,' he said. 'She tried to get an AVO with the police... I think that tells you a lot about the substance of the matter. 'But I can say in relation to that, just about all the things she's complaining about, she initiated in consensual arrangements.' The domestic violence order filed in the NSW Local Court accuses Latham of subjecting his ex-partner to 'a sustained pattern' of psychological, financial, and emotional abuse over almost three years, according to details seen by The Australian. The application alleges Latham engaged in vile acts, 'including defecating on me before sex and refusing to let me wash, forcing degrading sexual acts, pressuring me to engage in sexual acts with others, demanding I call him 'master', telling me I was his property, and repeatedly telling me that my only value to him was for sex to demean and control me'. Leaked WhatsApp messages reported by The Daily Telegraph on Wednesday allegedly show interactions between Latham and his former partner. Latham told Daily Mail Australia the outlet's reproduction of the messages was 'not accurate'. It is also not suggested the claims of abusive behaviour are substantiated, only that the allegations have been made. The leaked WhatsApp messages include a series of lewd exchanges on February 20, 2025 during parliamentary sitting hours. 'Very hard thinking about you,' he wrote to Ms Matthews shortly after 11am, before following up with a series of suggestive emojis. 'Need badly to taste you,' he wrote that afternoon, alongside an emoji of a tongue. 'Made it back for first vote after dinner,' he said at 8.38pm. Latham told the outlet the communications did not impact his work. The tranche of leaked messages includes more explicit exchanges - too graphic to publish - spanning back as far as October last year. On several occasions, Latham is referred to as 'master'. He said Ms Matthews sent him images during parliamentary sittings, 'seeking a response', and that he could not describe them due to 'an abundance of caution about the revenge porn laws'. 'I don't think responding to a consensual partner on a private, intimate matter in any way has reduced my workload, which I would match up against any other member in the place,' he told The Daily Telegraph. Ms Matthews' allegations against the politician were detailed in court documents filed with NSW Local Court. Latham has denied the allegations which he described as 'comically false and ridiculous' in a post to X on Monday night. He said he had 'scores of documents' to support his claims and that he would rely on those documents to defend himself. 'As the old saying goes, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,' he wrote. Ms Matthews, who runs an e-commerce global logistics firm based in Dubai, Perth and Sydney, has applied for an interim order barring Latham from coming within 100 metres of her. She cited 'ongoing, reasonable fear of harassment, intimidation, and potential harm'. Her application accuses the former Labor leader of throwing a dinner plate at her, forcing her to call him 'master', and pressuring her to have sex with others. Ms Matthews' filing, reported by The Australian, also alleges Latham prevented her from cleaning up after defecating on her before sex and telling her she was 'property', and telling her that her only value to him was for sex to 'demean and control' her. Latham claimed the texting did not impact his work She also alleged 'physical violence' incidents, including pushing her against walls, forcing her out a door, throwing a plate at her during a row. She also claimed he drove at her with his car, hit her with the side mirror and caused a bruise. Latham is further accused of 'systematically undermining' Ms Matthews to 'control and isolate' her by comparing her 'unfavourably to other women and acting as if he would 'harm himself' to manipulate her. Ms Matthews accuses Latham of forcing her to cover the cost of holidays abroad 'under duress', making her purchase expensive goods, and coercing her regarding her father's will for his benefit. She claims she experienced 'constant fear and hyper-vigilance' since her arrival home from a June trip abroad, alleging all past break-ups with Latham featured a repeated 'pattern of harassment and intimidation'. She alleges: 'The defendant has held intimate photos and videos of me, and I have been afraid he would expose them to shame and control me if I attempted to leave or resist his demands.' Latham denied all accusations to The Australian. 'Nothing has been served on me nor has anyone contacted me,' he told the newspaper. 'I haven't had anything to do with her (Ms Matthews) since 27 May, so nearly seven weeks ago. I ended the 'situationship' that night for very good reason.' The matter will be heard at Downing Centre Local Court on July 30.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Yahoo
Defense says WCPO weatherman and his sons gave 'rehearsed answers' during trial testimony
A jury is set begin deliberations Friday, July 11, to decide if a man who confronted WCPO meteorologist Steve Raleigh after a minor crash in a restaurant parking lot is guilty of a low-level misdemeanor charge. Troy Morrow, 47, is charged with menacing. Prosecutors say that he approached Raleigh 'with anger,' with his 'fists balled up' and that Raleigh believed Morrow would harm him. The June 22, 2024 incident outside the Montgomery Inn Boathouse already has led to Raleigh's son, Kyle, being convicted of assault charges. According to a judge, Kyle Raleigh recklessly, but not intentionally, caused injuries to Morrow's elderly mother and father, who were knocked to the pavement. He was fined and sentenced to three years of probation. Morrow's mother, Lois, who was 76 at the time, suffered fractures to her face, brain bleeding and a concussion, court documents say. The menacing charge Morrow faces is punishable by up to 30 days in jail. The case is in Hamilton County Municipal Court. One of Morrow's attorneys, Mariah Woeste, suggested during closing arguments Thursday, July 10, that the Raleigh family was using the trial as a way 'to get their side of the story out.' Neither Steve Raleigh nor his family has spoken publicly about it. Woeste told jurors that testimony from Raleigh and his sons was about 'controlling the narrative, damage control and image repair.' Morrow, she said, took responsibility for his actions that night and even apologized. She said Morrow was innocent. Among the key evidence against Morrow is a shaky and blurry cellphone video of the confrontation. City prosecutors said Morrow can be heard in the video saying, 'I'm going to (expletive) you up.' But when played in court, amid all the chaos, it's not clear anyone said that. 'It's not there," Woeste said. 'The threat did not happen.' Woeste noted that although Steve and Kyle Raleigh, as well as another of Steve's sons, testified they heard Morrow say, 'I'm going to (expletive) you up' – all three also admitted that they didn't tell police about it. When asked by Morrow's attorneys during cross-examination about why they didn't tell police, according to Woeste, all three said 'they couldn't remember.' She suggested that Raleigh and his sons had 'rehearsed answers.' Keith Forman, an assistant city prosecutor, accused Woeste of 'victim blaming and victim shaming.' Forman said during closing arguments that Steve Raleigh 'didn't ask for any of this.' The meteorologist was celebrating a birthday that night, and no one was intoxicated, he said. Forman also noted that Morrow's apology was a clear sign of guilt. At one point, Raleigh had said to Morrow that if he hadn't taken off his shirt and 'come at' him, nothing would have happened. Morrow's response, according to Forman: 'I'm a man. I can apologize.' Forman said the threat can be heard on the video. He urged jurors to use noise-cancelling headphones and listen again. 'Just because it wasn't ... as clear as we'd like,' he said, 'that doesn't mean it didn't happen.' This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Defense: Steve Raleigh, his sons gave 'rehearsed answers' during trial
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Yahoo
Man in confrontation with WCPO weatherman Steve Raleigh found not guilty of menacing
After a three-day trial, the man who confronted WCPO meteorologist Steve Raleigh after a minor vehicle crash in a restaurant parking lot was found not guilty of menacing but guilty of a lesser disorderly conduct charge and ordered to pay a $50 fine. Troy Morrow − whose 76-year-old mother suffered facial fractures and a concussion after being knocked to the pavement by Raleigh's son during the incident − was visibly relieved after the jury in Hamilton County Municipal Court announced its decision. Walking out of the courtroom with his attorneys from the county public defender's office, Morrow began to cry, apparently with relief. He declined to comment. Raleigh left the courtroom soon after the verdict was announced. The case surrounded the aftermath of a minor vehicle crash that happened June 22, 2024, in the parking lot of the Montgomery Inn Boathouse. Morrow, a Boathouse employee, had asked his parents to pick him up that night, after he severely cut his hand on broken glass. Morrow, who would ride his bicycle from Covington to the Boathouse, believed he needed stitches. Morrow's mother, father and cousin arrived in a Ford F-150 pickup. Soon after, a Cadillac Escalade driven by Raleigh's son, Carter, struck the pickup. That ultimately led to a verbal confrontation between Morrow, 47, and Steve Raleigh. Raleigh testified during the trial that Morrow said, "I'm going to (expletive) you up," before taking off one of the two shirts he was wearing and then aggressively approached him. That testimony was at the heart of the case, which was handled by city prosecutors. Troy Morrow's cousin videorecorded some of the incident on a cellphone but the alleged threat cannot be clearly heard in the video. 'It's not there," one of Morrow's attorneys, Mariah Woeste, said during closing arguments. 'The threat did not happen.' Another of Raleigh's sons, Kyle, ran up, and punched Morrow in the head before pinning him to the pavement. In response, Morrow's father approached Kyle Raleigh from behind, struck him and tried to get him off his son. Morrow's father and mother were both knocked to the ground. Menacing is a low-level misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days in jail. The disorderly conduct charge is an even lower-level misdemeanor. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Man in incident with WCPO's Steve Raleigh found not guilty of menacing
Washington Post
11-07-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
He closed his store after years of threats. Why Mexico's extortion problem is getting worse
MEXICO CITY — It started with a phone call to a men's clothing store in the heart of Mexico City's historic center. 'I need you to put together 10,000 pesos ($500) for me weekly, or else we'll have to do something,' the voice said. The owner hung up and didn't answer the phone again for days. But when another call came the following week, in a surge of courage and indignation the owner told the caller he wouldn't pay, that the money demanded would have been half the store's daily income. 'Well, prepare to face the consequences ,' the voice said.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Yahoo
Arab man indicted for criminal mischief after intentionally damaging property
MARSHALL COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — A man was indicted by a Grand Jury in March for criminal mischief, according to court documents. Jail records show that Gary Garrett was booked into the Marshall County Jail and charged with first-degree criminal mischief on Thursday. Court documents show that Garrett intentionally tried to damage a 2023 Kia Forte, in the amount exceeding $2,500. Documents also show that Garrett intentionally tried to injure someone by hitting a stationary, occupied vehicle with his own vehicle. Furthermore, it says, by physical action, intentionally placed the victim in fear of imminent serious physical injury. Based on the indictment, Garrett is also charged with third-degree assault and menacing, in addition to the criminal mischief charge. Court records show that Garrett has a history of felony assault, domestic violence-strangulation/suffocation, intimidating a witness and even kidnapping. He is currently being held on a $50,000 bond and has an arraignment set for June 3. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
