Harry Garside has revealed the surprising reason why being arrested and falsely accused of domestic violence was “the best thing that ever happened to him”.
The 27-year-old Australian boxing champion was arrested at Sydney Airport last year as he returned home after appearing on I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! in South Africa.
He was accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend Ash Ruscoe, which he strongly denied, and police later dropped the charges after his legal team presented video evidence they said showed his ex was the alleged attacker.
Garside has now reflected on the ordeal of the court case on The Jess Rowe Big Talk Show and revealed why he is now grateful for the turbulent time.
“The way it happened and what I was accused of was very serious. Now I look back and realize that it was the best thing that ever happened to me,” he shared.
“It was like the time in my life where I really had to step up and become my own friend and take care of myself.”
He added that at a particularly low point in his ordeal, he began collecting “evidence” about why he was a good person, which significantly boosted his morale.
“It was like a turning point where I was like, ‘I need to change this story, this belief. I need to stop collecting evidence that I’m a terrible person,'” she continued.
Harry Garside has revealed the surprising reason why being arrested and falsely accused of domestic violence was “the best thing that ever happened to him”
Last year, he was accused of assaulting his ex Ash Ruscoe and police later dropped the charges after his legal team presented video evidence they said showed his ex was the alleged attacker.
“I started gathering evidence that I’m a good person, and I am. I do everything I can. If a friend called me right now, I would do everything I could to help them as much as I could.”
Garside said he would never have felt driven to do so if he hadn’t gone through that difficult experience, which he says helped him become a better person.
In May last year, Garside was cleared of common assault charges following an investigation into allegations of domestic violence between him and his ex-partner Ash.
All charges against him were dropped a month after his first arrest.
Garside had returned to Australia after filming reality show I’m A Celebrity! in South Africa only to be detained at Sydney International Airport minutes after landing in dramatic scenes.
On March 25, the same day Garside originally left for the show with no communication from the outside world until her elimination, Ruscoe approached police to indicate that she feared for her safety.
“I categorically deny the allegations of violence and question the account given to police,” Garside said at the time.
The following month, the Olympic boxer was vindicated after the charge and arrest warrant for violence were formally dropped.