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They were one of the biggest success stories to come from The Bachelor franchise. But it seems Sam and Snezana Wood’s fairytale world has been shaken following the shock arrest of the fitness personality for alleged domestic violence offences.
Police were called to the luxury La Mer holiday accommodation villas in Noosa, Queensland, at around 9pm Saturday October 3, following reports of a “domestic disturbance”.
Wood, 46, was arrested and taken into custody at the local watchhouse, with police confirming the next morning that he had been charged with “assault occasioning bodily harm and strangulation in a domestic setting”.
Wood remained behind bars for five days before fronting Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Thursday via videolink in a bid to be released on bail. The court heard the alleged victim, his wife Snezana, had provided a video recorded statement, and was “supportive of the charges”, however no statement from the witness had been obtained.
Photographs of the alleged victim’s injuries were also presented to the court.
The fallout
Wood’s defence lawyer Mathew Cuskelly said his client plans to defend all charges, with the possibility he could claim self-defence.
“There is importantly a denial in respect to any strangulation,” Cuskelly said.
He added Wood had been suffering from depression and was “enduring hardship of trying to quarantine those hardships from his family for some period of time and it was agonising”.
Police allege Wood and the alleged victim were engaged in an argument when he “grabbed the alleged victim by the throat with one hand” and threw her against a wall, “striking her head”.
“She thought she was going to die,” police alleged.
The court heard the Triple Zero call was made by Wood’s adult stepdaughter Eve.
The court also heard that police in Victoria had allegedly attended Wood’s home in relation to a similar incident about three years ago, but that the woman had not wanted to make a complaint at that time out of “fear of retribution”.
He denied that any previous incident took place.
Wood was denied bail, and is due to appear back in court on November 23.
At the time of publishing, Snezana, 45, their three girls Willow, eight, Charlie, seven, and Harper, four, and Snezana’s daughter from a previous marriage Eve, 21, have not been seen since the incident, with Snezana rumoured to be bunkering down in a Melbourne home they’ve been renting while their mansion undergoes renovations.
The fallout has been swift, with DBG Health, the company behind Sam’s own fitness brand, 28 by Sam Wood, announcing they had officially severed ties with him, while several business associates and reality TV star friends have distanced themselves from him while the matter is before the courts.
Married At First Sight star Jules Robinson announced she had ended her partnership with 28, saying the decision was “made in line with my values”, while former The Biggest Loser star Tiffiny Hall made it clear that she was no longer associated with his company, adding, “I will continue to empower women to be safe, strong and support in any way I can.”
Fellow Bachelor star Matt Agnew also took to social media to condemn the charges, writing, “The behaviour alleged is abhorrent. I condemn domestic violence without hesitation, without reservation, and in the strongest possible terms,” he added.
The alleged incident comes 11 years after Wood and Snezana first met and fell in love on the third season of The Bachelor Australia. Their love was cemented from the moment Snez stepped out of the limo, and just three years after Wood declared her the winner in the emotional finale, they wed in an intimate ceremony in Byron Bay.
The couple went on to have three beautiful girls together, while continuing to raise Snez’s first daughter, Eve.
Despite their seemingly idyllic lives – and his multimillion-dollar fitness empire, Wood revealed in a candid interview in April last year that looks can be deceiving.
“Everyone thinks, ‘Oh, you guys have got it all worked out.’ We don’t have it worked out. We are a dog’s breakfast,” he said bluntly on the This Glorious Mess podcast. “It’s a madhouse, and it’s stressful, and we’re exhausted and we’re probably like everybody else. Instagram doesn’t necessarily portray the snapshot that is the life we live inside our house,” he added.
If you are experiencing domestic or family violence call 1800RESPECT or 1800 737 732.
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