Jardyn Eli Dalliston Rigo jailed for ‘intense’ and ‘persistent’ fatal assault on Perth promoter Andy Scally

A man has been sentenced to six and half years for the death of prominent Perth music promoter, Andy Scally, who was killed in a fatal fight while coming to the aid of a female friend. Jardyn Eli Dalliston Rigo, now 41, was sentenced in the Supreme Court of WA after pleading guilty to unlawful assault causing the death of Mr Scally, 51, on September 25, 2023 at Kensington in Perth. The court heard the influential Electronic Dance Music promoter rushed to help his friend Melissa‑Jane Bannister after she called him to remove Rigo from her home. Prosecutor Elisabeth Noonan said Ms Bannister sought Mr Scally’s help after Rigo attempted to lock her inside the Pitt Street apartment. When Mr Scally arrived he told Rigo “get the f*** out of the house”. The younger man charged and tackled Mr Scally landing on top of him and pinning him to the ground where he began punching him to the head. A neighbour said she heard a man say “c’mon mate just go“ then a “sickening thud” several times. Ms Bannister tried to stop Rigo’s assault on the older man by hitting him over the head with a stick but the attack continued. Mr Scally, who had a weak heart from methamphetamine use, began to struggle to breath asking Rigo to “let him go” but the younger man continued the assault. Rigo eventually stopped punching Mr Scally but then said “do you have any drugs” and began searching his pockets while the older man moaned while leaning against his car. Mr Scally then collapsed and died. A post mortem determined “intense exertion related to the assault” caused a “cardiac arrest”. Rigo’s lawyer Mark Trowell KC said his client did not know Mr Scally had heart disease or that he had “consumed a large quantity of methamphetamine” that day. He also pointed out that when Mr Scally collapsed, Rigo placed him in the recovery position until paramedics arrived. The court heard that Rigo and Ms Bannister had been in volatile two-month relationship that resulted in a violence restraining order being taken out by the 48-year-old woman the previous year. The court heard a violence restraining order had also been taken out by Rigo’s mother during his brief stay at her house in Queensland in September 2023. Justice Terence Palmer told Rigo that his “persistent” assault on Mr Scally was to demonstrate to Ms Bannister that her friend could not help her and to “assert control”. “You wanted to prove you were tougher than him... this was in the context of you refusing to leave your former partner’s house,” he said. “It was your attack that had rendered him unwell even if you did not understand and know the seriousness of his health condition.” Justice Palmer sentenced Rigo to six and-a-half years in prison to be eligible for parole after serving four years. The sentence was backdated to when he first entered custody on September 25 2023. Following his death, friends and loved ones of Mr Scally paid tribute to his work in kick-starting the careers of young DJs and bringing international artists to Perth. Mr Scally was one of the original founders of Stereosonic, one of the countries leading EDM festivals. He was responsible for bringing big names like Calvin Harris and will-i-am to Australia.