He was described as “sloppy” by the builder who rushed to the aid of his alleged victim, but the man accused of stabbing Dover Heights mother Helen Coulston is a close friend of her property developer husband, and is himself a high-flying real estate executive.
What led to the violent incident on the doorstep of Helen and Walt Coulston’s Weonga Road mansion on Monday remains unclear, after the alleged perpetrator was on Tuesday revealed to be Bellevue Hill man Matthew Brian Ramsay – a corporate high-flyer who is facing a charge of petty shoplifting in addition to attempted murder.
Matthew Brian Ramsay has been charged with wounding with intent to murder.
Walt Coulston, the managing director of real estate management and investment firm CK Property Group, told reporters outside the home on Tuesday that Ramsay was the best man at his wedding and godfather to his daughter.
Ramsay’s LinkedIn profile lists him as a developments partner at property services firm Stanton Hillier Parker, and a former executive at Ray White specializing in commercial property.
Coulston, returning to the family home with takeout on Tuesday, said “we’ve done our best” to explain to his children what had happened to their mother, who is now recovering after her ordeal.
Builder Peter Haramis, who rushed to the home from a nearby construction site after hearing Helen Coulston’s screams just after midday on Monday, said he found her on all fours with a man standing over her.
He said the man froze, giving Coulston – who was bleeding from a stab wound to her chest – time to grab the knife and fling it to the footpath before fleeing inside. Haramis grabbed the knife and called an ambulance as he watched the alleged attacker, dressed in a gray tracksuit and looking “a bit sloppy”, calmly leave the scene in a white Audi.
Helen Coulston’s husband returning to the family’s Dover Heights home on Tuesday.Credit:Louise Kennerley
Police tracked the vehicle to Campbell Parade in Bondi, where they arrested Ramsay at gunpoint. He was taken to Waverley police station and charged with wounding a person with intent to murder.