As Kyrgios's alleged Tesla robber will make stay application, authorities told to 'put their skates on'

Lawyers for the alleged robber accused of stealing Nick Kyrgios’s Tesla at gunpoint will ask the court to stay the proceedings due to what they say is a delay in receiving information from the police, which resulted in a special magistrate asking, “What’s the hold-up?”

The case against the 33-year-old, who was arrested after the alleged incident on 1 May 2023, returned to the ACT Magistrates Court on Tuesday (12 September) where his lawyer, Legal Aid’s Jan de Bruin, asked for time to be set aside in court so he could make a stay application.

He did not tell the court whether this would be for a temporary or permanent stay.

Dr de Bruin said it had been 14 weeks since his client pleaded not guilty to his charges, yet a number of items were still outstanding in the brief of evidence. He said the matter could not move ahead until the items were produced.

“You want to put some pressure on the prosecution to produce this material,” Special Magistrate Sean Richter remarked.

Prosecutor Caitlin Diggins said the defence lawyers had asked for the body-worn camera footage from 11 police officers and police were in the process of redacting parts of the footage so it could be handed over as soon as possible. Two had been served so far, she said.

Special Magistrate Richter noted how the police must know the defendant has been in custody since his arrest.

“He may have done the whole of the sentence before he’s actually found guilty or not guilty,” he said, adding he wanted the authorities to “put their skates on”.

He listed the matter for a stay application later in September.

It is alleged Mr Kyrgios’ mother had partially opened the front door of a home on 1 May to find a mask-wearing man standing outside and holding a long-barrelled firearm that was pointed at her, court documents say.

He allegedly forced the door open with his gun, demanded the keys to Mr Kyrgios’s green Tesla parked nearby, then pointed the gun towards her and demanded she tell him how to drive it. She said she didn’t know how because it wasn’t hers.

It is reported she was escorted outside at gunpoint but ran back inside the home and screamed for help when the man got inside the car.

Mr Kyrgios used an app on his mobile phone to track his Tesla so he could tell police its location.

He also placed an 80 km/h speed limit on the car via the app, which helped police follow it.

Police found the Tesla parked on a street about 15 minutes after it was stolen, but the driver allegedly sped away when they approached.

A pursuit was started, with police chasing the car through Canberra while Mr Kyrgios gave them updates on its location.

Officers cornered the car in Ainslie at about 9 am and the defendant was allegedly pulled from the driver’s seat and arrested after a struggle, during which he was tasered.

Police said that due to his alleged non-compliance during his arrest, he sustained a number of injuries and was taken to the Canberra Hospital for treatment.

Later that month, police claimed the shotgun used in the alleged robbery had been seized.

The defendant, who is not named for legal reasons, has been charged with aggravated robbery, failing to stop a motor vehicle for police, riding/driving a motor vehicle without consent and resisting a public territory official.