Socceroos World Cup hero Nestory Irankunda’s older brother has been charged with a raft of offences after allegedly clashing with police in South Australia.
Gabriel Irankunda, 24, is due before the courts over four charges stemming from an incident in Parafield Gardens, in Adelaide’s Northern Suburbs, on February 18.
According to court documents, Gabriel has been hit with two counts of hinder or resist police, one count of disorderly or offensive behaviour, and one count of refusing to state name or address.
Gabriel is a talented soccer player much like his 20-year-old superstar younger brother, and has played across Adelaide and in regional South Australia.
On Sunday, Nestory became the youngest Socceroo to score a World Cup goal with a blistering first-half strike in Australia’s opening group-stage match against Turkey, and claimed man of the match honours.
Gabriel will front the Elizabeth Magistrates Court for a pretrial conference on July 8.
When Gabriel was contacted for comment on the police allegations, he texted this reporter a string of laughing-face emojis.
When asked to speak on the phone, he responded, ‘How about no,’ with four more laughing emojis.
Gabriel Irankunda is facing four charges in the Elizabeth Magistrates Court
His younger brother Nestory Irankunda has become the darling of Australian sport
It is alleged Gabriel resisted or hindered police during a Parafield Gardens incident in February
Nestory and Gabriel’s sister Susana Hamenyimana then said: ‘We have a family spokesperson who will call you. I can’t really comment on [the charges], and I’m sure [Gabriel] won’t want to comment on that.’
A woman identifying herself as Sandra Griffin then called and said: ‘Gabriel won’t be making a comment.’
Minutes later, Greg Griffin – Sandra’s husband and the managing partner of Adelaide law firm Griffins Lawers – also contacted the Daily Mail.
Mr Griffin is the former chairman and part-owner of Nestory’s A-League club, Adelaide United, but said he was acting as the Irankunda family’s solicitor.
‘This matter is being handled and we anticipate it will be resolved at the next court appearance,’ he said, by way of a statement on behalf of Gabriel.
The legal drama couldn’t be further away from Nestory’s deeds for the Socceroos.
In their second group-stage match, Australia faces the hosting United States Men’s Team at Seattle Stadium at 5am AEST.
Nestory won man of the match in Australia’s opening group round match against Turkey
Since Nestory’s incredible performance on Sunday against Turkey, he has become the darling of Australian sports, proving he could withstand the onslaught of global attention.
He silenced his critics – most notably, American football great Mike Grella, after he wrote off their World Cup campaign before their stunning win.
Grella, 39, slammed Australia’s chances and poked fun at Nestory, saying: ‘[The Socceroos] are the weakest team in the group.’
‘With all due respect… Irankunda…,’ Grella added in a mocking tone.
Nestory responded by taking a shot at Grella after the victory.
‘At the end of the day, you’ve got to let these people talk – and it was the same with these lot here [the Turkish team],’ Nestory said.
‘They came, they did their talking, but they couldn’t back it on the field, and we got the win.
‘People can talk all they want – but if they’re not going to put a performance out there on the pitch, then there’s no point in talking.’
The emerging hero marked his incredible goal with a Tim Cahill-esque celebration
Nestory’s proud dad spoke to Nine News after the Socceroos’ historic win
Nestory was born in a refugee camp in Kigoma, Tanzania in 2006, to Burundian parents who had fled their homeland due to civil war, before making their way to Australia.
He was the fourth child of eight children to his parents Gideon and Dafroza.
Kigoma has one of the largest refugee camps in the world, Nyarugusu, with an estimated 150,000 inhabitants.
When he was still an infant, his family moved to Perth, eventually settling in the northern suburbs of Adelaide when he was seven. There, he caught the football bug, and in turn later caught the eye of Adelaide United.
He rose through their youth system to become a first-team star before being spotted by Bayern Munich, the team his father supports.
In 2024-25 he moved to Munich – but didn’t break into the first team. A loan spell followed with Grasshopper in Switzerland before he moved permanently to Watford last summer.
After the Socceroos’ historic win on Sunday, his mother said she ‘cried like a baby’ over her son’s achievement.
‘It’s not easy to score a goal in the World Cup,’ Ms Siyajali, 47, told The Adelaide Advertiser on Monday.
‘I spoke to my son yesterday and he said he’d score a goal.’
Nestory’s father, a church pastor who has joined Nestory in North America for the World Cup, summed up the win succinctly when he told Nine News his son was a ‘very good player’.
