Producer of the Friendlyjordies YouTube channel, Kristo Langker, has been charged with stalking Deputy Premier, John Barilaro.
The 21-year-old employee of Jordan Shanks (known on YouTube and to his 499k subscribers as Friendlyjordies) was arrested following a complaint issued to NSW Police by Barilaro.
The arrest was conducted by “the Fixated Persons Investigation Unit” and occurred at Langker’s home in Dulwich Hill on June 4.
According to a spokesperson for the police, Langker “was taken to Newtown police station where he was charged with stalking” in relation to two incidents.
The first of these alleged incidents occurred at an event being held at Macquarie University on April 19 of this year.
At this event, where Barilaro was speaking, Langker’s employer, Shanks, approached the acting deputy premier dressed as Luigi from the Mario video games.
With Langker beside him (allegedly acting as his ‘lawyer’), Shanks proceeded to confront Barilaro by repeatedly asking him, “why are you suing us?”
Though Shanks decided to leave, police claim that Langker became involved in an alleged “tussling [incident] with several persons in an attempt to get closer to the Hon Mr Barilaro”.
Reports state that the second incident occurred a few hours before Langker was arrested.
After attending the funeral of rugby great Bob Fulton, Langker is alleged to have approached Barilaro as he was getting into his car.
“Deputy premier, why are you suing my boss?” is the question that Langker is alleged to have asked the politician before he drove away. There are also claims that Langker was filming the incident as it occurred.
Women are killed every week by domestic violence which the state’s and federal government refuse to solve, but a producer for a YouTube comedian gets a special police unit sent to his door. This is bone chilling. The alleged #stupidfatidiot needs to be investigated over this.
— Dwayne➐ (@AbolitionOf) June 14, 2021
The law firm, Xenophon Davis, are acting as Langker’s defenders in his case. Mark Davis, a partner of the firm, had this to say in regards to the situation:
“We are highly disturbed by misinformation that police appear to have acted upon … We have the video of the interaction with the Deputy Premier and it does not appear to accord with the police facts.”
For Langker’s defence, Davis has gone on record with the ABC to state that Langker’s inquiries were “legitimate journalistic questions”.
Langker’s lawyers have condemned the actions of police concerning their client’s arrest, labelling those affected as “injured and traumatised” after police “push[ed] … [Langker’s] mother to the ground and smash[ed] his partner into a table”.
NSW Police rebuked this, stating that the arrest had not resulted in any complaints.
If Kristo Langker, 21, (@friendlyjordies producer/researcher) is an accredited member of NSW parliamentary Press Gallery his arrest on @JohnBarilaroMP “fixated person” (stalking) charges would appear to be over-reach and an abuse of power. @GladysB @MarkSpeakman @xenophondavis https://t.co/pyfgQf1UYx
— Quentin Dempster (@QuentinDempster) June 14, 2021
Langker’s arrest is another scandal that Shanks has found himself in.
In May, Barilaro sued Shanks for defamation after the YouTube star posted two videos, bruz and Secret Dictatorship, to his channel.
In the videos, Shanks claims that Barilaro is “a corrupt conman” who has consistently committed crimes such as perjury and blackmail.
In the case, Barilaro claimed that the videos are just two of several videos where Shanks insults the deputy premier, even going so far as to launch “vile and racist attack[s]” against the politician’s Italian background.
As of now, Barilaro has not spoken about Langker’s arrest. Meanwhile, Langker has been “granted strict conditional bail to appear at Newtown local court” on June 24.
