- Star faced Broadmeadows Magistrates Court on Thursday
- He had previously been banned for 18 games by the AFL.
Former AFL player Tarryn Thomas has avoided a criminal conviction after police dropped a charge of using a telecommunications service to harass a woman.
The 24-year-old former North Melbourne player, who was dismissed from the team in February for repeated conduct breaches, faced Broadmeadows Magistrates Court on Thursday.
Thomas, who also uses the surname Trindall, pleaded guilty to breaching a court order involving repeated calls to a victim in April, the court was told.
But the police dropped the harassment charge.
Six of the calls were answered by the victim, who reported hearing heavy breathing on the other end of the line, the court was told.
Police seized Thomas’ phone in May after a search of his Ormond address, which revealed it was the phone used in the alleged calls.
Thomas appears smiling outside a Melbourne court on Thursday after police dropped charges against him.
The former North Melbourne star was suspended for 18 matches by the AFL for shocking behavior towards a woman, which included threatening her via direct messages.
Magistrate James Henderson handed Thomas a 12-month good behavior bond on condition he continued therapy with a psychologist and psychiatrist.
The decision took into account Thomas’ guilty plea and his work to rehabilitate himself through therapy and connection to culture.
The court was told that Thomas’s father, who was abusive and had substance abuse problems, had prevented Thomas, aged 10 or 11, from seeing his mother for years after the parents separated.
“Both medical professionals identified that Mr. Trindall has suffered developmental trauma as a result of experiences he had as a child, that those experiences have negatively impacted his behavior and his understanding of appropriate relationships,” said Thomas’ attorney, Sally. Vary.
“He lacked a role model. He lacked family ties. He lacked care, essentially during that period of time, in those formative years.’
Thomas was sacked after being suspended for 18 games by the AFL, which confirmed in May that he could not play or train at any level of the game without league approval.
His firing came when he was found to have acted inappropriately toward a woman by engaging in multiple acts of misconduct, including threatening a woman via direct messages multiple times.
In April 2023, North fined Thomas $5,000 for posting a video showing him driving dangerously and asked him to donate another $5,000 to a road safety charity.
The AFL has been contacted for comment.