The man once dubbed the “godfather of the swimming pool industry” has stepped down from his senior executive position after the Daily Mail reported that he had been charged with assaulting his former partner.
Chris Papageorgiou, a father of two, resigned as co-chief executive of pool supplies company Maytronics Australia after appearing in court earlier this month on serious assault charges.
Maytronics is a major manufacturer of robotic swimming pool cleaners and vacuum systems, with operations throughout Australia.
Papageorgiou appeared before Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court earlier this month, where a bid to suppress material connected to the case was rejected. He has been charged with assaulting an ex-partner.
The Daily Mail reported that Papageorgiou’s lawyer had applied for a suppression order that would have prevented the media from publishing material relating to the case. The application was refused after the court found it had no basis.
The court emailed reporters about the application on Wednesday afternoon. When the matter was heard the following day, however, the bid was swiftly dismissed.
During the hearing, the Daily Mail’s reporter also noted that anyone seeking a suppression order in a Victorian court must provide three days’ notice. The requirement is intended to uphold open justice by giving journalists the opportunity to respond to, and oppose, such applications.
Separately, the Daily Mail reported that Papageorgiou had been stood down as co-CEO of the pool company before his court appearance over matters unrelated to the assault charges.
Chris Papageorgiou resigned from Maytronics Australia after being charged with two counts of assault
The father of two has been charged with assaulting his former partner
Papageorgiou, left, reluctantly posed with a friend outside the court
It is understood that Maytronics stood him down pending an investigation into “allegations that have not yet been particularised”.
Sources later told the Daily Mail that Papageorgiou resigned from the role after details of the allegations against him were reported in the media.
The Daily Mail contacted Maytronics for comment on the circumstances surrounding his resignation but had not received a response.
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Details of the alleged assaults were not disclosed in court because the hearing focused on the suppression application. The Daily Mail has spoken to the complainant, who said the former couple first met as teenagers and dated for two years during their final years of high school before going their separate ways.
“He was my first love – my first everything,” said the former partner, whose identity the Daily Mail has withheld.
The pair reconnected in 2020 after Papageorgiou’s divorce, when they unexpectedly crossed paths at a Melbourne café.
The chance meeting soon led to the pair entering a serious relationship.
The legal matters involving Papageorgiou span two states. He is also alleged to have assaulted the woman while they were staying at Q Station, the former North Head Quarantine Station near Manly in Sydney, in November last year.
Papageorgiou resigned as co-CEO of Maytronics Australia, a major manufacturer of robotic swimming pool cleaners and vacuum systems operating across Australia
Papageorgiou’s legal matters span two states: it is also alleged he assaulted the woman while the couple was staying at Q Station, near Manly, Sydney, in November last year
The hotel is a heritage-listed retreat perched on the cliffs of North Head and surrounded by Sydney Harbour National Park.
Papageorgiou is due to face Manly court in person at a later date over one assault charge.
The relationship is believed to have finally unravelled in March this year outside Papageorgiou’s home in Melbourne’s south-eastern suburb of Bentleigh East.
Papageorgiou was subsequently charged with unlawful assault. The alleged Bentleigh East incident is related to the charges being heard at Moorabbin Court.
The woman further alleges that in April he attended Mykonos Restaurant in Oakleigh in an attempt to locate her.
‘In April he turned up to Mykonos Restaurant in Oakleigh to find me. I asked him to leave, which he initially did; however, he returned approximately one minute later,’ she said.
Papageorgiou, who did not respond to our request for comment, will face court at a later date.