EXCLUSIVE Former Big Brother star David Graham breaks his silence and blames the victim after assaulting a man at his home
A former Big Brother contestant has been convicted of assaulting a younger man who was staying on his farm.
David 'Farmer Dave' Graham, 45, broke his silence to Daily Mail Australia on Monday night after pleading guilty to common assault last week.
Graham escaped jail time last Friday when he was sentenced to a nine month conditional release order in Windsor Local Court over the January 27 altercation.
The order requires him to not commit any offences while subject to the order and to attend court if called upon at any time during its term.
A two-year Apprehended Violence Order was also lodged against Graham, who famously came out as gay to his housemates on national television during the sixth season of Big Brother in 2006.
While Graham admitted that he did the 'wrong thing', he plans to appeal the severity of the conviction.
Graham said he allowed the victim, whom Daily Mail Australia has chosen not to name, to stay at his farm on Sydney north-west outskirts as the man 'had nowhere else to stay'.
The reality television star first met the man through his work assisting troubled young people to learn trades and train dogs.
Graham claimed the victim 'hosted drinking parties and consumed drugs' at his farm while he was away in Queensland visiting his terminally ill mother.
'I counselled him that he must find alternative accommodation,' he told Daily Mail Australia.
He also claimed the young man had not fed his animals while he was away and alleged he found 'drugs and alcohol' in his home.
After returning from Queensland, Graham asked the man to leave his home, which the victim complied.
Graham claimed he woke later that night to find the man had returned to the property with a mate.
He claimed the men refused to leave and insisted on collecting the victim's belongings.
'I was shocked and as I'm in recovery from PTSD after five years working in a high stress work environment,' Graham recalled.
'I pushed with two open palms (the victim) from my house out past the truck to get them away from my door.
'At the time I had no way of knowing how many men were in the dark ... both men were well over six foot, I was alone on my rural property and needed to assert myself and I did so.'
Graham admitted he did the wrong thing.
'I accept that pushing a human is assault, I plead guilty to doing that,' Graham said.
Three other charges including intentionally choke person without consent, stalk/intimidate intending fear physical harm, and destroy or damage property worth less than or equal to $2000 were withdrawn.
Graham claimed the withdrawn charges were 'false allegations' and 'did not occur'.
The AVO prevents Graham from assaulting or threatening the victim, stalking or harassing him, and intentionally destroying or damaging property or animals belonging to him.
It expires on May 2027.
Graham plans to appeal the severity of his conviction and says he's learned an important lesson.
'As a man recovering from severe depression and PTSD, I acted on impulses with the threat as presented to me in the night by men with a truck backed up to my house on a rural property,' he said.
'I know now 'no good deed goes unpunished' and will no longer give assistance to the homeless.
'I made a mistake by giving (the victim) another chance while I was away from my farm and not in a well mindset due to my personal issues and my mother's diagnosis.
'This is the universe telling me I must learn to set clear boundaries and not take on other people's problems and focus on my own recovery.'
An animal behavourist and farmer, Graham first found fame when he appeared on the sixth season of Big Brother in 2006.
Graham won nationwide support for coming out as gay to his housemates on the show, where he finished third.
In 2022, he returned for 14th season of Big Brother, where he finished 13th out of 22 contestants.
He has since become a presenter and speaker and worked with troubled youth through the RUFFtrack program he founded alongside his other roles.
The program invited participants to train a dog, while training them in fields including landscaping, welding, and animal husbandry among other trades.
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