An Australian rich-list car enthusiast has been found guilty of failing to maintain control of his vehicle at a roundabout in an incident that occurred over four years ago.
Adrian Portelli, 36, faced driving-related charges just days before Christmas in 2020 after two highway patrol officers observed him sliding in a newly developed housing estate in the outer Melbourne suburb of Diggers Rest.
The Melbourne-based entrepreneur, well known for his lottery business and high-profile purchases on The Block, was charged with driving in a manner that caused loss of traction, failing to properly control a vehicle, and careless driving.
During a four-day hearing at the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court in December last year and earlier this month, Portelli contested the charges, arguing that he had not deliberately, or otherwise, caused the car to slide.
He returned to court on Thursday, where Magistrate Michael McNamara found him guilty of failing to maintain proper control of his vehicle.
However, Mr McNamara acquitted Portelli of the more serious charge of driving in a manner that caused loss of traction, ruling that while traction was indeed lost, it was not intentional.
The charge of careless driving, which was considered an alternative, was dismissed.
Police alleged that the wealthy businessman was seen on December 22 performing “circle work” in his then-partner’s grey Mercedes C63 around a roundabout in Diggers Rest.
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Leading Senior Constable Glenn Hutton and Leading Senior Constable Christopher Ford testified that they observed Portelli’s vehicle sliding from a parallel street approximately 200 meters away.
“I describe it as deliberate, as the front of the car was always controlled to face the roundabout,” Constable Ford stated.
Constable Hutton testified that he saw the vehicle executing two 180-degree turns in a “doughnut” motion before “fishtailing” out of the intersection.
The prosecution’s case was built on the testimony of the two officers, along with what they claimed was an “implied admission of guilt” recorded during Portelli’s interaction with police when he was stopped, and his vehicle was seized.
Body-worn camera footage from Constable Hutton captured the officer remarking, “bad day for circle work,” to which Portelli responded with a grin, saying, “tell me about it.”
However, in court, Portelli maintained that he did not understand what Constable Hutton meant by “circle work,” assuming it was a reference to him driving around the roundabout “like an idiot.”
“It was just a nervous and a frazzled response,” he explained.
Mr McNamara informed the court that he could not be “unequivocally” convinced this was an admission of guilt and did not consider it in determining the verdict.
Portelli testified that he had been on his way to meet an associate when he became lost due to a GPS malfunction, which caused him to drive around the roundabout in an attempt to regain his bearings.
“It was a very new area, the GPS bugged out and told me to go right when I wanted to go straight,” he said. “Embarrassingly, I went back around (the roundabout) and it recalibrated.”
He denied losing traction or disabling traction control, asserting that he would “be a moron” to do so in wet and rainy conditions.
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Mr McNamara determined that both officers were credible witnesses, concluding that Portelli did lose traction and slide around the roundabout but remained unconvinced that it was intentional.
“He did lose traction, he failed to properly maintain control of a vehicle,” Mr McNamara stated.
Portelli’s barrister, Penny Marcou, regarded the outcome as a victory, highlighting that her client had successfully defended against the “allegation of hooning.”
Prosecutor Alex Turner urged the court to impose a conviction, citing Portelli’s history of traffic violations, including speeding and driving without a license.
However, Mr McNamara remained unconvinced, pointing out that Portelli had not faced any further driving-related matters since 2020.
He was fined $296 but was not given a conviction.