EXCLUSIVE: Bachelorette star Charlie Newling, 36, dies as car plunges off cliff in Dover Heights Sydney: Reality TV contestant welcomed newborn baby eight weeks ago
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A troubled reality TV star has tragically died just two months after the birth of her second child.
Charlie Newling, 36, who appeared on Ali Oetjen’s season of The Bachelorette in 2018, died after his car plunged off a cliff in Dover Heights, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, at 11pm on Saturday.
Police and paramedics arrived at the Raleigh reserve after being contacted by nearby residents who found his car on fire at the base of the 70-metre cliff.
Newling reportedly welcomed his second child, a daughter, with partner Kristal Taylor just eight weeks ago.
He also has a 13-year-old son from a previous relationship.
Newling (pictured) was initially one of the favorites to win Ali Oetjen’s heart on The Bachelorette
Police and paramedics arrived at the Raleigh reserve after being contacted by nearby residents who found his car on fire at the base of a 70-metre cliff.
Newling was initially one of the favorites to win Oetjen’s heart on the Channel 10 dating show and was nicknamed “Mr Perfect” by viewers after boasting of his strong “family values “.
However, fans turned against him over his controlling behavior towards Oetjen, including refusing to introduce her to his family until they were “exclusive.”
Then, just two days after he was kicked off The Bachelorette, footage emerged of him being thrown to the ground outside The Golden Sheaf in Double Bay.
Newling, who had appeared on The Project earlier in the evening, said he had been drinking and was celebrating his time on the show with friends when a fight broke out with bouncers around 10:50 p.m.
After the fight it emerged that he had a then eight-year-old son from a previous relationship which he had also not revealed on the show.
Charlie previously dated glamor model Esme Dewitt (pictured) in 2020
A police spokesperson confirmed that Saturday evening’s crash was not being treated as suspicious.
While he briefly dated former Bachelor star Dasha Gaivoronski after leaving the show, he kept a low profile until September 2022, when he was sentenced to 13 months in prison for threatening to torture and kill his stepfather in a series of 37 vile text messages over a three-hour period.
“You are still controlled by that whip of a husband,” says one message to her mother.
“I’m going to kill him one day in front of you before I leave.”
“You have no idea what I’m capable of, but just know it’s not going to be pretty.”
Magistrate Ross Hudson heard Newling suffered significant childhood trauma, including having to care for his biological father as a teenager after he had an accident and became paraplegic.
His father died in 2018 from a painkiller overdose.
The court also heard that Newling, who worked as a builder after finding fame on The Bachelorette, had struggled with alcohol abuse.
He was convicted of a mid-range drunk driving offense in 2021.
However, Magistrate Hudson said he had to consider the “fear, torment and horror” caused by Newling’s messages.
He was sentenced to 13 months in prison to be served in the community.
A police spokesperson confirmed that Saturday evening’s crash was not being treated as suspicious.
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