- Kangaroos fired a 23-year-old on February 22
- AFL discovered that he had threatened a woman through direct messages
- As a result, Thomas received an 18-match ban.
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Tarryn Thomas is facing a police investigation after allegedly threatening his ex-partner, and the news came hot on the heels of his sacking by North Melbourne last week.
Police officers from the Prahran Family Violence Investigation Unit spoke to a 23-year-old man from Ormond, in Melbourne’s south-east.
Thomas’s dismissal by the Kangaroos came after he was handed an 18-game suspension for threatening a woman via direct message on multiple occasions.
“There is no excuse for the behavior or the harm he caused to a young woman,” AFL general counsel Stephen Meade said in a statement when the ban was made public.
Thomas (pictured) had a contract estimated to be worth $700,000 a year when he was sacked by North Melbourne on February 22.
The AFL found Thomas had threatened a woman via direct messages on more than one occasion and handed him an 18-game suspension.
“The fact that Tarryn chose to engage in behavior in lieu of direct messaging that was and is clearly inappropriate, even while receiving education and counseling for prior infractions, contributed to the length of the suspension imposed.”
Thomas’ ban will run until July 22 and he will not be allowed to play football at any level until then.
North issued the following statement after news of the ban broke: ‘North Melbourne has received notification from the AFL that Tarryn Thomas has been found guilty of inappropriate behavior towards a woman.
“As a result, and in light of previous indiscretions, the club has informed Thomas that he will no longer be a North Melbourne player.”
The club’s decision is not surprising in light of the series of off-field problems he has had and the extremely poor performance they have had on his contract, which is estimated to be worth between $600,000 and $700,000 a year.
Thomas has been under investigation since January, when new allegations of inappropriate behavior towards a woman were made against him through the AFL’s respect and accountability portal.
The former Kangaroo escaped a criminal conviction for using a ride-hailing service to harass someone when he appeared in court in July 2023.
The 23-year-old, who is out of contract at the end of the 2024 season, was fired by the club twice last year, first in February and then in March, amid concerns about his behavior towards women.
He was put through a respect and responsibility education program and spent three weeks in the VFL before earning a senior recall and eventually playing 12 AFL games last year.
In July 2023, Thomas walked free from court without a criminal conviction for threatening to distribute intimate videos of his ex-partner.
He was initially charged with threatening to distribute an intimate image of another person, but prosecutors downgraded the charge to using a ride-hailing service to harass someone.
Thomas was granted a diversion, which meant he escaped a criminal conviction, and was ordered to pay $1,000 to a charity.