Boxer appealing sentence after referee attack

An amateur boxer who was jailed for at least a year after he broke a soccer referee’s jaw is appealing for a lighter sentence, claiming it was “manifestly unreasonable” and he was “provoked”.

Adam Abdallah, 26, came to the public’s attention in 2023 after a video that appeared to show him attacking soccer referee Khodr Yaghi after a match at Padstow Oval in southwestern Sydney was circulated online.

He punched Mr Yaghi multiple times in the face and kicked him in the head, leaving the referee with four missing teeth and a broken jaw.

The amateur boxer initially pleaded not guilty to reckless grievous bodily harm, and was granted bail in May 2023 after the circulation of an extended version of the viral video appeared to show he’d been attacked first, however, he later changed his plea to guilty.

He was sentenced in February to two years and three months behind bars with a non-parole period of one year and two months.

Taking into account the time he’s already spent in custody on remand, Abdallah will be eligible for parole in March 2026.

However, in the Supreme Court of Sydney on Friday, a hearing was held where Abdallah appealed for a lighter sentence.

Defence lawyer Thomas Woods told the court Abdallah’s sentence was “manifestly unreasonable”, due to the victim’s “violent provocative conduct” which was not captured on the video.

“Plainly, the videos show significant violent conduct on the part of my client … but they don’t capture the entirety of the event,” he said.

Mr Woods said his client is instead seeking an intensive corrections order, which allows him to serve time in the community instead of behind bars.

“He becomes eligible for parole in March next year … that’s a significant period of time for a young man to spend in custody,” he said.

“There is a public interest in making sure that the risk that this gentleman will reoffend is minimised it might be thought that requiring him to serve a sentence in custody might likely lead to possible reoffending.”

Mr Woods said Abdallah accepts he acting in an “appalling way”, but is otherwise of “good character”.

However, crown prosecutor Monica Millward argued in Judge Nicole Noman’s sentencing she had not overlooked the matter, and that she had already found the Mr Yaghi did “provoke” Abdallah by “striking him with a linesman flag”.

“The victim instigated the use of violence … but this is not overlooked either,” she said.

“While that was the starting point there was far more to it than that.”

“In our submission the sentencing judge … is undoubtedly correct.”

In the grounds of the appeal, the defence argues the victim’s provocative conduct “did not significantly mitigate the applicant’s conduct”.

They also stated the judge “failed to address a submission that the penalty should be reduced due to an entry of the plea”.

The court was told Abdallah had been watching the soccer game despite being barred from attending matches weeks earlier after he was found guilty of “instigating a melee”.

The violent confrontation in April 2023 arose after Abdallah insulted the referee and said “f**k your mum and your sister”, according to the agreed facts.

Mr Yaghi struck him with the lineman’s flag pole and Abdallah fell before getting back to his feet to continue aggressively yelling at the referee.

Abdallah then knocked Mr Yaghi to the ground, where he forcefully punched and kicked the “defenceless” referee multiple times, including landing blows to the head.

A video taken of the attack showed blood dripping from Mr Yaghi’s face after Abdallah was restrained by onlookers.

The referee lost four teeth and required surgery to insert multiple plates in his jaw after it was broken during the attack.

A decision as to the success of the appeal will be revealed at a later date.