Sister of top jockey is jailed for bashing her cancer-stricken friend to steal his inheritance - as horror images emerge of the attack
- Kristy Avdulla and an associate raided Richard Della Grazia's home in April 2019
- She knew Mr Della Grazia had been given a large inheritance before the attack
- The pair bashed Mr Della Grazia, bound him in duct tape and cable tied his hands
- They stole his bank passwords and tried to transfer $80,000 from his account
Bound with duct tape and cable ties, a cancer patient was forced to hand over bank details to a Melbourne woman he thought was a friend so she could try to steal his inheritance.
Kristy Avdulla was supposedly a long-term friend of Richard Della Grazia, who was targeted in the scary attack in Frankston in April 2019.
The 27-year-old, whose brother is Australian jockey Brenton Avdulla, would regularly visit the 52-year-old who had been battling heart and pancreatic cancer for nearly three years.
But when she came over to visit on April 10 last year, she brought another man with her.
Mr Della Grazia didn't see the other man until he was in his hallway.
'Don't worry who I am,' the man, wearing a black mask with yellow eyes, told him.
Kristy Avdulla (pictured) and an associate raided Richard Della Grazia's home in April 2019
When Mr Della Grazia asked what the man wanted, and he replied 'you'.
Avdulla was jailed for six years on Wednesday, after pleading guilty to charges including aggravated burglary, false imprisonment, intentionally causing injury, and obtaining property and financial advantage by deception.
Mr Della Grazia was grabbed by the throat and thrown to the ground. He yelled for Avdulla to help him.
He gave up struggling so he could breathe, and had his entire face and ankles duct-taped. His hands and arms were tied with cable ties and then taped to his torso.
Avdulla and the man ransacked the property taking the Mr Della Grazia's wallet, phones and computers, and forced him to hand over his banking passwords.
Avdulla knew Mr Della Grazia had $144,000 from an inheritance in his accounts.
Avdulla is the sister of Australian jockey Brenton Avdulla (pictured centre)
Mr Della Grazia was left lying on the bathroom floor for what felt like an hour after the attack, and was found by a friend checking in on him.
He suffered a broken nose and broken ribs, and spent days in hospital.
Over the next two hours $80,000 was transferred from Mr Della Grazia's accounts to his debit card. Avdulla was seen on CCTV withdrawing $4,000 cash at ATMs.
She also made nearly $50,000 of unauthorised transactions into her own bank accounts using 'car' and 'car loan' as the descriptions.
She transferred $20,000 to Mr Della Grazia's tabcorp account and bought a $12,999 gold chain.
The transactions were cancelled before they could be finalised.
She was also sentenced by Judge Sue Pullen on Wednesday over the theft of a car from a car dealership during a test drive while she was disqualified from driving.
Judge Pullen ordered Avdulla to serve at least four years behind bars before she's eligible for parole.
Most watched News videos
- Scottish woman has temper tantrum at Nashville airport
- Tesla Cybertruck explodes in front of Trump hotel in Las Vegas
- Mass panic as New Orleans attacker flies down Bourbon street
- Shocking moment zookeeper is fatally mauled by lions in private zoo
- Horrific video shows aftermath of New Orleans truck 'attack'
- Meghan Markle celebrates new year in first Instagram video
- Tesla Cybertruck burns outside Trump hotel in Las Vegas
- See how truck that drove into crowd made it through police barrier
- Cheerful Melania Trump bops to YMCA at Mar-a-Lago NYE bash
- New Orleans terror attack suspect reveals background in video
- Plane passenger throws drink at flight attendant in boozy fight
- Horrifying moment yacht crashes into rocks and sinks off Mexico coast