source : the age
The 18-year-old P-plate driver who allegedly ploughed into a group of Newcastle Knights supporters has been granted bail to his family’s multimillion-dollar home in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, six days after the crash that injured 10 people cheering their team on to the grand final.
Indika Bambrick Samarasinghe was granted bail before Judge Trevor Khan at Newcastle Local Court on Friday morning, appearing via video link from Silverwater Correctional Centre in Sydney.
He will return to his four-bedroom family home in Randwick, in the care of mother Nik Bambrick, on Friday. He will be barred from leaving the residence between 8pm and 7am under the bail conditions, and must report daily to Randwick Police Station.
Police will enforce his curfew with regular checks, in which he’ll be compelled to present to the front door of his residence as often as twice a day, or eight times weekly. He won’t be allowed within 20 kilometres of Newcastle, nor to sit in the driver’s or passenger’s seat of any car, and will be banned from alcohol and drugs.
Samarasinghe, raised and educated in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, will be driven by his mother from Silverwater to their four-bedroom family home, purchased in March 2022 for $3.55 million, according to publicly available property records.
Photographs posted to social media of Samarasinghe and his mother show the mother and son, along with Samarasinghe’s brother, enjoying holidays overseas, including to Italy and Japan.
Samarasinghe will surrender his passport before leaving Silverwater, and will be barred from entering any international airports or other Australian point of departure. His matter will return to Newcastle Local Court on Thursday, which he will attend through video link.
Samarasinghe faces nine charges after allegedly driving his BMW convertible into a group of Knights fans. A five-year-old girl and a 67-year-old were among the wounded, some of whom were rushed to hospital in critical conditions before stabilising.
Three patients remain in hospital on Friday morning, all of whom are stable.
NSW Police Assistant Commissioner David Waddell said officers were investigating reports the P-plater had been “driving erratically” before he lost control of the vehicle.
Footage posted to social media depicted the BMW with personalised number plates careering around the roundabout moments before the crash, as shocked onlookers were heard screaming.
Samarasinghe’s driver’s licence had been suspended in February 2026; he unsuccessfully appealed this suspension in April 2026. Following the Newcastle crash, his licence was suspended again.
He didn’t apply for bail when appearing in court on Sunday. His lawyer Chun-Yuan Shieh requested a medical assessment for his client. Samarasinghe appeared with an injury to his left eye.
The court heard Samarasinghe faces a maximum of seven years in prison if convicted. He is charged with three counts of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, three counts of negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, and three counts of causing bodily harm by misconduct while in charge of a motor vehicle.
Police are investigating reports he had accelerated through a roundabout before losing control on a wet road. Two male passengers, aged 18 and 19, were in the BMW at the time but were not injured.
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Daniel Lo Surdo is a breaking news reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald. He previously helmed the national news live blog for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via email.
