A friend warned a drink driver to not take the wheel of his car moments before he ran over a pedestrian at 8.52pm on 18 November, court documents show.

Stephen Papagelou, 29, of Balwyn North appeared before Melbourne Magistrates Court on Wednesday. He pled guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of pedestrian Henry Ekselman, 73, who was crossing the road at the time. Mr Ekselman, a father of five and grandfather, died an hour later in hospital after suffering from critical injuries.

Police documents show that Mr Papagelou had a blood-alcohol level of 0.075 after the crash, which followed an evening mixing drinks at a Richmond pub and sharing a bottle of wine at a pizza restaurant. Prior to the accident, at 8.47pm, Mr Papagelou picked up his friends in his Mercedes Benz. One friend told Mr Papagelou he shouldn’t drive. The summary states: “Feeling unsafe, she tried to get out of the car but the accused held her forearm and inched his car forward, obliging her to close the door.”

The accused drove off in his Mercedes Benz with his friend in the front seat and two others in the back. Mr Papagelou was driving at a speed of 52 km/h in a 40 km/h zone at the point of impact when he drove through a light just as it turned red, overtaking another vehicle on the intersection of Daly and Chapel streets in South Yarra. He did this as Mr Ekselman crossed the road against a red pedestrian signal.

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Both Mr Papagelou was also taken to hospital for observation after hyperventilating moments after the accident. His barrister, Peter Morrissey, SC, said he had shown remorse, “He wants to say sorry and face the music in the County Court,”  Mr Morrissey said.

Mr Ekselman’s family watched proceedings via video link.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Magistrate Charlie Rozencwajg extended Mr Papagelou’s bail for him. He will front the County Court for a plea hearing later this year.