The husband of Australian singer Tones and I, and a company she owns, have been fined over illegal renovations at a Melbourne property, while charges against her have been dropped.
Toni Elizabeth Watson, who goes by the stage name Tones and I, was charged with 11 offences over works conducted at a Frankston investment property owned by her company Johnny Run Away Pty Ltd in late 2020.
The company was also hit with 11 charges and her husband Jason Bedford, 31, was charged with five offences.
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The charges were brought on by Frankston City Council after it became aware of illegal building works being undertaken at the property.
The works included the demolition of a front porch, construction of a front porch, construction of an outdoor stairway and deck, and demolition of internal walls.
Bedford faced Frankston Magistrate’s Court over the charges on Monday, while Watson and her company were represented by her lawyer.
All 11 charges against Watson and four charges against Bedford were dropped.
He pleaded guilty to one charge of carrying out work without a building permit.
Several charges against the company were also dropped but it pleaded guilty to three charges including undertaking building works without a permit and failing to comply with a stop work order.
The court heard the works were undertaken without a building permit and a council-issued stop work order was not complied with.
Tones and I and her husband Jason Bedford.
Credit: Instagram
“Had Mr Bedford obtained a building permit before the work was undertaken, in effect, we wouldn’t be before the court today,” his lawyer Sam Bird told the court.
Bird asked the magistrate not to record a conviction due to the impact it could have on Bedford’s future employment opportunities.
He also submitted to the court Bedford, who had previously worked as a bricklayer, didn’t know he was required to have a building permit.
But Frankston Council prosecutor Bruce Gardiner said there was no way he wouldn’t have known, due to his previous role and the fact that he owned a bricklaying company for 10 years.
He also submitted the offence was aggravated by the non-compliance with the stop order and that a tenant had rented the property before a final inspection certificate was issued.
The Frankston property.
Credit: realestate.com.au
The building works on the property have since been resolved and the certificates of compliance have been issued.
No conviction was recorded for Bedford nor the company.
He was fined $5000 and Johnny Run Away was fined $20,000.
The property was sold in September 2020 for $720,000, according to an online real estate listing.