SON OF AFL LEGEND STEPHEN SILVAGNI SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS FOR RAPE
Tom Silvagni, 23, has been sentenced to six years and two months in prison for the rape of a woman in January 2024. He must serve a minimum of three years and three months before becoming eligible for parole.
Silvagni is the son of Stephen Silvagni, who played for the Carlton Football Club from 1985 to 2001 and is regarded as an AFL legend. His brother Jack Silvagni has also played in the AFL since 2016, initially for Carlton and now for St Kilda. His grandfather Sergio was a two-time premiership winner for the Carlton Football Club, and his mother Jo works as a television personality.
A jury found Silvagni guilty on December 5 after hearing evidence that he digitally raped the woman in a dark bedroom following a night out with friends. During the incident, Silvagni deceived the victim by pretending to be her boyfriend. When she told him to stop, he continued regardless.
The prosecution characterised the assault as rape through deception, emphasising that Silvagni had deliberately taken steps to conceal his identity and cover his tracks. Judge Greg Lyon described these actions as deliberate conduct that significantly aggravated the severity of the offence.
Throughout the trial and initial court proceedings, Silvagni's identity remained under a suppression order, preventing media outlets from publishing his name or revealing details about his family connections. This legal protection lasted until last Thursday when the County Court of Victoria lifted the suppression order following a protracted legal battle. Silvagni's legal team had fought to maintain the suppression order, arguing that his mental health conditions made him vulnerable to psychiatric harm, including the risk of suicide, if his identity became public.
The lifting of the suppression order came after media organisations challenged the restriction in court, ultimately succeeding in their argument that the public interest outweighed privacy considerations.
During a pre-sentence hearing, the victim gave evidence about the profound impact the assault had inflicted on her life. She described experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder and the collapse of friendships in the aftermath of the offence. She told the court that the rape forced her into years of healing she never consented to, and that the trauma continued to haunt her on a daily basis.