A Victorian man involved in a scuffle at Sydney Airport, during which a police gun accidentally discharged, has been arrested again for allegedly assaulting three men at Central railway station the following day.
Nicholas Teplin, 41, appeared in court on Friday after he allegedly punched a man in the face at the station on Thursday afternoon, causing the victim to fall with a bleeding nose. He then struck two other men in the head as he moved through the concourse, police allege. He was arrested as he tried to grab a fourth man's bag.
Teplin was charged with multiple offences, including assaulting a police officer after he allegedly pushed a constable in the chest while in custody. The previous day, an Australian Federal Police officer's short-barrelled rifle fired a shot during Teplin's arrest at Sydney Airport's T2 domestic terminal, with the bullet lodging in a cafe oven. The AFP declined to detail how the gun was discharged, citing an internal investigation.
Magistrate Daniel Covington ordered a mental health assessment for Teplin, describing the police fact sheet as “bizarre,” particularly comments Teplin allegedly made to federal officers. Prosecutors argued insufficient evidence of mental illness, noting Teplin allegedly said after his arrest: “I know I’m going to get bail, like always.” Teplin’s lawyer, David Newham, said his client had been medicated for PTSD for five years and that assessment was in the community’s interest.
Teplin will be detained until a psychiatrist assesses him. He faces charges of obstructing a federal official and creating a disturbance at an airport over the earlier incident.
