The woman hired to manage Antony Catalano

In an era where most executives and politicians hide behind media managers, Antony Catalano has historically stuck out for his willingness to speak with journalists himself. Even if those conversations weren’t always pleasant.

So when it emerged he’d hired Melbourne PR crisis expert Lahra Carey over the weekend, it was a sign even he knew shit had hit the fan. Which it certainly had: he appeared in the Melbourne Magistrate’s Court last Friday on charges of assaulting a woman, false imprisonment and making threats to kill. Within days of that, further allegations of his violence against his wife, Stefanie Catalano, were published in The Australian Financial Review.