Tradie’s terrifying threat after he attacked his ex as she cleaned his apartment – and the one decision that may have saved her life

EXCLUSIVE

A Brazilian trader in Australia on a partner visa beat his estranged wife and threatened to have her taken from the apartment in a “black bag” after learning she had become a stripper.

Victor Hugo Leao, 31, tormented his ex-partner during a 30-minute campaign of terror in her apartment in Edgecliff, in Sydney‘s eastern suburbs, on April 25, 2023, after she left him.

As he held her against the kitchen wall and screamed in her face, his ex-wife – who Daily Mail Australia prefers not to name – thought she was going to die.

Leao’s brutal attack was eventually interrupted by police officers after they received a call from a neighbor who overheard the commotion.

Now Leao’s horrific actions may be exposed after he pleaded guilty earlier this month to assault, sexual touching without consent, stalking and intimidation, and destruction of property.

Victor Hugo Leao, 31, has pleaded guilty to domestic violence against his estranged wife

According to police records obtained by Daily Mail Australia, Leao and his wife met in Brazil seven years ago before moving to Sydney and getting married in 2020.

However, just two years later in November 2022, their marriage fell apart and his estranged wife moved to Western Australia while he continued to live in their Edgecliff apartment, which was rented in her name.

Five months after the divorce, she returned to Sydney to clean the apartment after Leao told her he was moving out.

But when she arrived at the property around 1.30am she realized the keys he had left for her did not open the front door.

She contacted Leao and asked him to come over and give them to her.

When he arrived, he tried to force her to talk about their relationship while they were in the kitchen, police records show.

His estranged wife said she didn’t want to talk and was tired and needed to clean, but Leao became more and more persistent, saying, “We’re going to talk about this now.”

He then started abusing her, claiming she had ‘lied to him’ and that she was a ‘bad woman’ for having started working as a stripper in Perth since their divorce.

Leao called her a “whore” and said she had “no dignity or respect” before cornering her against the wall and punching her twice in the face.

He then became curious about a visit she was making to Brisbane and demanded she unlock her phone to show him details of the trip.

Court documents show he hit her, cornered her against a wall and called her a “whore” after learning she had worked as a stripper since they broke up

The Brazilian tradie, who is in the country on a partner visa, was in court earlier this month

Opening her phone, she quickly texted her boyfriend “help” at 2:08 a.m. before Leao took it from her and started reading her messages to her new lover, destroying her screen protector in the process.

He then started taunting her about her new profession, grabbing her chest and shouting, “Is this how customers touch you in the club?”

As he continued to shout, he came closer to her and threatened: “If the police come today, you will end up in a black bag.”

Another resident of the unit block heard the chaos and decided to call the police, who quickly arrived on the scene and separated Leao from his estranged wife before arresting him.

According to police facts, the victim was “visibly distraught and crying” and told officers she thought he was going to kill her.

At the time of the arrest, Leao was the subject of an unserved assault warrant issued by a Perth court, which was served after he was taken into custody in NSW.

Magistrate Michael Barko appeared at Waverley Local Court earlier this month and sentenced Leao to an 18-month community corrections order, conditional on complying with the AVO.

The order took effect on May 17, 2024 and will remain in effect until November 16, 2025.

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