Lamborghini-driving cryptocurrency founder Sam Karagiozis had his bail conditions relaxed so he can attend his brother’s weddings and bucks night and oversee his souvlaki store chain reports The Age.
Mr Karagiozis, 29, was granted a variation to his bail conditions in the Melbourne Magistrates Court today. The Melburnian entrepreneur had been charged with 13 offences which include the importing, possessing and trafficking drugs such as cocaine, MDMA, ketamine and methamphetamine between March 2016 and October 2017. He had been charged almost two years ago and had been granted bail in mid-2019.
Defence Council Dermot Dann, QC, said Mr Karagiozis had complied with bail conditions since being released. He asked the court to drop the curfew condition so he could attend a bucks night in mid-January and be best man to his brother George on 30 January. The curfew did not allow Mr Karagiozis to be at his ten souvlaki stores in Melbourne’s outer suburbs.
READ MORE: Karagiozis, self-made entrepreneur/bitcoin trader, charged with drug trafficking
Magistrate Andrew McKenna said, “I doubt he’d be rolling up any souvlakis.”
Mr Dann said his client needed to be at the sites.
“What he wants to be able to do is be on site at any one of those restaurants as the need arises,” Mr Dann said.
READ MORE: Sam Karagiozis fights to get back his assets
Mr McKenna agreed to allow Mr Karagiozis to attend the wedding but was barred from discussion the court case or any proceedings with his alleged co-offender at the wedding events.
“They can talk about how wonderfully well the night is going or the weather or the pandemic, but nothing about the proceedings,” the magistrate said.
He will continue to attend twice-weekly reporting sessions with police, not contact prosecution witnesses, contact his co-accused or leave the state.
Mr Karagiozis will front court again in March.
