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He shot to fame in one of the world’s best-known soap operas, a fresh-faced 10-year-old with the world at his feet.
Sixteen years later, Home and Away star Felix Dean is behind bars after battling trauma and drug addiction in the glare of the media spotlight.
Dean, who skyrocketed to fame in 2007 playing VJ Patterson on the hit soap, has been jailed for assaulting three people and attempting to carjack a luxury car using a wine bottle as a weapon, NCA Newswire reported.
Dean pleaded guilty in a Sydney court and will spend at least a year in jail for the meth and booze-fuelled rampage.
The court heard he was drunk and on drugs when he approached a stranger outside a Sydney restaurant in April.
In May, the fallen star made a drunken attempt to carjack an Audi A5, swinging a full wine bottle at the driver and demanding: ““Get the f*** out of the car c*** and give me your f***ing keys,” NCA Newswire reported.
His attempt was unsuccessful, with the driver kicking him in the chest and face until he gave up.
Felix Dean as VJ Patterson in Home and Away alongside Ada Nicodemou. Photo / Supplied
Meth and alcohol
Dean’s lawyer Phoebe MacDougall told court that her client did not dispute the facts but said he did not remember the incidents due to his intoxication from alcohol and methamphetamine.
She said his addiction was sparked by a traumatic event at school.
Dean himself gave more detail in a press statement, saying he “resorted to drugs to cope with strong emotions”.
“Not only dealing with that, but I was also living on the streets, with the shame of knowing I was recognised because of my time as an actor on TV,” he said.
Magistrate Robert Williams said it was clear the Dean needed “substantial treatment” for his mental health and addiction issues but noted that Dean had previously been before the courts on violence charges.
He sentenced the former actor to 20 months in jail, with a minimum non-parole period of one year.
“The court needs to consider the safety of the community,” he said.
Former child star Felix Dean.
Apologies
“I want to apologise to the many people I have hurt and to my mother who has stood by me,” Dean wrote in a statement to NCA NewsWire.
He said his time on Home and Away has been positive but he had struggled since his three-year-run ended in 2010.
“Ten years on, when even the character has been replaced by multiple actors, I am trying my best to overcome the challenges I have outside of the show,” he said.
“I wish nothing more than to be afforded the opportunity to do so without the scrutiny of the public and the media.”
