Brendan Nugent’s troubled life emerges as accused driver appears in court over alleged Helen Haines attack

The man accused of deliberately running down federal MP Helen Haines briefly appeared in a packed regional courtroom on Wednesday, where his lawyer revealed he suffers from a rare neurological disorder and made no bid for bail.

Brendan James Nugent, 43, was brought into Courtroom 2 of Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court flanked by two security officers, just metres from where the independent MP was allegedly struck by his four-wheel drive on Monday.

Nugent — sporting a long, unkempt beard, a crumpled grey windcheater, black shorts and thongs — sat quietly in the dock throughout the brief hearing, which was over in five minutes.

He did not speak and made no application for bail.

The court appearance offered the first glimpse of Nugent since his arrest and revealed new details about his medical history.

Nugent faces three charges — dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury and the Commonwealth offence of causing harm to a Commonwealth public official — for his alleged attack on Dr Haines.

The prosecution alleges Nugent was driving a 1997 Toyota Landcruiser Troopcarrier when he struck Dr Haines outside her electorate office in Murphy Street, Wangaratta, about 3.35pm on Monday.

The Commonwealth charge goes further, alleging he deliberately drove his vehicle into Dr Haines with the intention of harming her because of her status as a public official.

Investigators have described the attack as targeted, although Nugent’s alleged motive remains unknown.

Court documents released after the hearing revealed he has also been charged with cultivating and possessing cannabis at his rural property in Tarrawingee on October 20, the day after the alleged attack.

During Wednesday’s hearing, Nugent’s lawyer, Chirag Patel, told Magistrate Allison Vaughan there were concerns about his client’s health.

“My client suffers from idiopathic transverse myelitis. It’s a neurological disorder,” Mr Patel said.

Idiopathic transverse myelitis is a rare condition involving inflammation of the spinal cord that can cause pain, weakness and other neurological symptoms.

Mr Patel also revealed Nugent had been suffering from concussion and that it was his client’s first time in custody.

When Magistrate Vaughan asked about potential withdrawal from substances, the lawyer said there were no concerns. He also confirmed Nugent was not currently prescribed medication.

Asked whether his client had already been assessed by a medical professional, Mr Patel said that was “unclear”.

No details of the prosecution’s allegations were read aloud.

Prosecutors agreed to serve a hand-up brief by December 24, with Nugent’s committal mention scheduled for February 4, 2027, at Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court.

Outside court, a woman who taught Nugent art at primary school spoke emotionally about her former student.

Jacqui, who asked that her surname not be published, remembered Nugent as a “great kid” who could sometimes be withdrawn.

“I could see that there was possibly some issues with him that probably ran a bit deeper,” she said.

“He was a bit withdrawn sometimes, but yeah, he was a beautiful kid, like most of the kids were.”

She said she had reconnected with Nugent since he left school.

“I had contact with him again a few years ago to support him on a mental health journey that he was involved in, which only lasted for a few weeks,” she said.

“He was quite confused about being in an institution here and needed support, and I felt that I could do that.”

Jacqui said Nugent had a strong interest in horticulture but had struggled to find employment.

She said she did not condone the alleged attack, but believed there were unanswered questions about Nugent’s circumstances.

“I just think there’s been a trial by media that’s been really unfair, and a lot of people have already made their mind up,” she said.

“I think we need to know exactly what happened, what was going on for him.”

Her comments came as a troubling picture emerged of Nugent’s isolated existence on a sprawling rural property outside Wangaratta, where he had been living alone amid overgrown vegetation, rubbish and hundreds of discarded bottles and cans.

The three-bedroom brick home sits on almost seven acres of land on Great Alpine Road in Tarrawingee, set well back from the road and surrounded by paddocks and trees.

When the property last sold for $365,000 in November 2015, it was advertised as “A Little Tarra Paradise”, boasting four fenced paddocks, a large family home, a substantial shed with four stables and a separate hayshed.

Real estate photographs from that campaign show an orderly rural property with neatly maintained lawns and gardens.

But the property has since fallen into considerable disrepair.

Long grass and weeds have since swallowed much of the garden, while the veranda is crowded with cardboard boxes, rubbish, gardening equipment and household items.

Dozens of empty whiskey bottles can be seen alongside plastic containers, beer bottles and rubbish in an outbuilding.

A large shed, once advertised as a selling point of the property, is cluttered with hundreds of plastic seedling pots, trays, buckets, old equipment and other items.

Neighbours said they had become increasingly concerned about Nugent’s behaviour, describing episodes of shouting, loud music and repeated police visits.

One neighbour said they heard screams coming from the property hours before the alleged attack.

“I heard him screaming yesterday morning,” they told the Herald Sun.

“It was strange because I had just been telling people he had been pretty good in the past few weeks.”

On Tuesday, Nugent’s father Rod and stepmother Christine Cunningham revealed that Dr Haines was a close family friend.

“Helen has been our friend for more than 20 years and what happened to her yesterday is devastating and unfathomable,” they said in a joint statement.

Dr Cunningham also has professional connections with the injured MP through Wangaratta’s healthcare and community sectors.

The women were photographed together in April 2025 when Dr Haines visited local disability employment organisation Merriwa Industries, where Dr Cunningham was then board chair.

Dr Haines, 65, remains in a critical but stable condition at Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital after undergoing emergency surgery but has now lost both legs as a result of the alleged attack.

The mother-of-three was standing near the boot of her vehicle outside her electorate office on Monday afternoon when Nugent’s four-wheel drive allegedly struck her multiple times.

Eyewitness accounts suggest the vehicle made a U-turn before hitting the MP, reversing and striking her again.

Melbourne couple Jacob Evans and Jacklyn Black were shopping across the road when they heard a crash and screams.

Mr Evans retrieved an emergency tourniquet from his vehicle while his partner helped keep Dr Haines conscious and coordinated those assisting her.

He said the MP remained remarkably composed despite her catastrophic injuries.

“We were asking her all the things to do, backwards from 10, and at some point she stopped doing all of that and thanked us . . . for the help that we were giving her,” he told the Herald Sun.

“Beautiful people was the word that she called us.”

Mr Evans believed the timing of the tourniquet application was critical.

“If it was 10 seconds later it would have been a different story,” he said.

Camping store manager Cody Lepoidevin said that Dr Haines had remained conscious and expressed gratitude to those helping her.

“For her to stay calm, and say, ‘Thank you so much for your help, you beautiful people’, I couldn’t commend her more highly,” the 20-year-old told The Age.

Other bystanders, including local barber Ricky Jefferies, helped restrain Nugent until police arrived.

Victoria Police said a nearby highway patrol unit responded within eight seconds of receiving the call.

Wellwishers have continued leaving flowers, cards and messages of support outside Dr Haines’ electorate office.

Wangaratta High School, which Nugent attended as a teenager, issued a statement expressing shock and sadness at the attack, making no mention of its former student.

“Helen is a very significant Australian. She has served our nation and the people of Indi with care, integrity and passion.”

“We are wishing Helen strength in the days ahead, and we are thinking of everyone caring for her.”