Bikie biter sent to jail for four years

A man who bit two centimetres off the nose of a former bikie following an argument has been sentenced to at least four years in jail.

A Sydney man who bit the tip off a former bikie's nose has been sentenced to a minimum of four years in jail.

Nicholas Harafias, 29, went to Peter Zervas' Leichhardt apartment last June thinking bikies were trying to target his mother and believing Mr Zervas was connected to the Hells Angels, thought he could help find out what was going on.

But after a few minutes of small talk, the men argued and Harafias lashed out, grabbing Mr Zervas' head and chomping through about two centimetres of the tip of his nose, Judge Helen Syme told Sydney's District Court.

"Harafias took hold of Mr Zervas' head, pulled it towards him and bit (his nose) with such force that the tip of (it) was amputated," she said.

During the trial, Harafias told the court it was "almost like something came out of me and bit him".

Judge Syme found special circumstances in Harafias' case and reduced the standard non-parole period from seven to four years.

He has a very minor criminal record and his prospects of rehabilitation were difficult to assess, but the assault of Mr Zervas was a "most serious example of grievous bodily harm," the judge said.

The court also heard he had some mental health issues, first diagnosed about two years before the attack.

With his sentence backdated, Harafias will be eligible for parole in January 2019.


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Source: AAP


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