The father of Richmond celebrity Dustin Martin was facing police assault charges at the time of his sudden death in New Zealand.
The New Zealand Herald is reporting Shane Martin was facing a variety of charges over an alleged assault on a lady he knew final October.
The newspaper stories that he appeared in the Tauranga District Court docket the place he pleaded not responsible to charges together with assault, strangulation, housebreaking and unlawful possession of steroids.
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The case was nonetheless lively when the 54-year-old was discovered useless in his condo in December, believed to be from pure causes.
Shane Martin, who was a senior member of the Rebels bike gang, had been dwelling in his delivery nation since being deported from Australia on character grounds in 2016.
He had beforehand lived in Australia for greater than 25 years and made a number of makes an attempt to return to be along with his three sons Dustin, Bronson and Tyson in latest years.
Dr Jarrod Gilbert, who co-wrote Martin’s biography, A Insurgent in Exile, reported the father of three was “all alone” when he suffered a suspected coronary heart assault one week earlier than Christmas final 12 months.
“People who met Shane for the first time were immediately disarmed by him,” Dr Gilbert wrote in the NZ Herald.
“They liked him and were drawn to him. He was warm, friendly and generous. He kept a drawer full of lollies for kids who visited his house.
“He also carried the burden of great bitterness; a bitterness that ate away at him.
“A bitterness that stabbed at him from the moment he woke, chased him throughout the day and invaded his dreams at night.”
Dusty nears AFL return
In the meantime, Dustin Martin is predicted to make his AFL return in this week’s blockbuster towards Collingwood at the MCG.
The AFL celebrity solely just lately returned to the membership following a stint of private go away, triggered by the sudden death of his father.
The three-time Norm Smith Medallist looms as a key cog in Richmond’s finals hopes, and coach Damien Hardwick is optimistic Martin will probably be able to play quickly.
“We watched him move around and he moved fine,” Hardwick stated final week.
“It’d probably be doing us and him a disservice if we put him out there (against West Coast) without the preparation he needs.
“He’s an important player and, to be honest, half of Dustin Martin is probably going to be better than the vast majority of players.
“But we just want to make sure when we get him back he’s ready to go.
“There’s a strong possibility it’ll be the Collingwood game, but we’ll have a better understanding of that next week.”
Martin returned to the Tigers’ Punt Street headquarters greater than per week in the past and has joined coaching along with his teammates in latest days.
Hardwick was playful when requested if Martin would return through the VFL.
“Sorry, VFL. He wouldn’t even know what that is,” Hardwick joked.
“He’ll get a big session tomorrow training-wise, then he’ll start to push his case from there.
“We’ve got to start getting some footy into him. He’s been training hard away from the footy club but he hasn’t been doing a lot of football work, which is the one thing that can bring players undone.”
Martin stepped away from the membership following the round-one loss to Carlton.
Hardwick feels Martin is in a greater place following the stint of private go away.
“He’ll have his good and his bad days, like most people going through that situation,” Hardwick stated.
“At this stage it’s more good than bad. We’ll just continue to encourage and support and put an arm around him when we need to.
“He’s in a lot better space than he has been, which is a real positive for us and I think the footy world in general.”
The Tigers (2-4) welcomed again co-captain Dylan Grimes, Kane Lambert, Sydney Stack, Maurice Rioli Jnr, and ruckman Ivan Soldo for the match towards West Coast.
Veterans Trent Cotchin and Robbie Tarrant had been rested; Jack Ross, Rhyan Mansell and Matt Parker had been dropped; whereas Thomson Dow was pressured out with a corked thigh.
West Coast (1-5) have been boosted by the return of All-Australian defender Jeremy McGovern, whereas debutant Greg Clark and former Blue Sam Petrevski-Seton had been additionally named.
Ahead Zac Langdon was dropped, whereas Bailey Williams (hamstring), Elliot Yeo (concussion), and Luke Foley (COVID protocols) had been pressured out.
