After entertainment manager Ralph Carr was found guilty of raping a woman, social media comments made by his ex-wife Tina Arena about the case have surfaced. 

Carr, prosecuted under his full name Ralph Carnovale-Carr, was found guilty last Tuesday of two charges of rape and a charge of sexual assault.

The young woman accused Carr of raping her after she claimed they drank wine and did cocaine together at his West Melbourne home one night in March 2023. He has always denied the allegations. 

A suppression order, similar to the one applied in the case of convicted rapist Tom Silvagni, had been in place for three years to protect Carr’s mental health and safety.

The Chains hitmaker commented on a social media post after news emerged seven months ago that a ‘high-profile’ man had been charged in the case that would later be revealed to be that of Carr.

‘Another high-profile Victorian has been charged with rape – and once again we can’t name them,’ Australia Femicide Watch wrote in a post at the time.

Tina wrote in a comment: ‘Time catches up with everyone. I think I know who it is, and looking forward to it being revealed.’

She has not made a public comment on her ex-husband’s case. 

Tina Arena’s comments about the case brought against her ex-husband Ralph Carr have resurfaced (Pictured) 

Ralph Carr and his barrister Dermot Dann KC attended court, where Mr Dann later said the jury ‘got it wrong’ 

Tina Arena with Ralph Carr in 1996

Carr was married to Australian pop star Tina Arena for four years, from 1995 to 1999, after managing her early career and transition from teen performer. 

Carr remained active in the entertainment industry until his remand on Friday and has represented performers such as Kate Ceberano and Richard Wilkins. 

He was also famous for his business associations as agent for AFL champion Dustin Martin and hit singer Vanessa Amorosi. 

Carr and Martin’s formerly close friendship was well-known in AFL circles and the pair were in a commercial partnership with developer Chris Bissiotis. (Martin issued a statement after the non-publication order was lifted on Monday, saying he had ended his professional relationship with Carr ‘effective immediately’.) 

Tina has previously described her marriage to Carr as ‘disgraceful’ and said she ‘went back to zero’ financially as a consequence of it.

She added that it was ‘a wonderful business transaction, from his perspective’. 

Arena wrote in her autobiography, Now I Can Dance, that she felt ‘disconnected from’ Carr on their wedding day. 

She also said they had a disagreement when she refused to sell photos of the ceremony to a women’s magazine. 

The Daily Mail approached Arena for comment after Carr was found guilty.

When Australian Femicide Watch posted about Carr’s case while his identity was still suppressed, Tina commented that ‘time catches up for everyone’

Carr will remain in custody until a pre-sentence hearing at a later date 

Carr’s victim faced giving evidence to a jury for six days, including cross-examination from defence in closed court.

Carr was ultimately found guilty of assaulting the woman at his Melbourne home in the early hours of March 24, 2023, after she discussed work with him and became emotional about her recent break-up. 

Carr was found guilty by a jury of nine women and three men, who took fewer than three days to return unanimous verdicts. 

The jury heard that Carr hugged the woman, who pushed him away, before he touched her breasts, waist and buttocks and raped her twice.

Carr will remain in custody until a pre-sentence hearing at a later date. 

Defence barrister Dermot Dann KC said Carr maintained his innocence and intended to apply for a rare stay on his sentence, pending an appeal against his convictions. 

Mr Dann successfully kept his client’s name and identity hidden from all media reporting during the trial. 

He said his client’s mental health was ‘central’ to the order and called a psychiatrist to give evidence to Melbourne’s County Court during a hearing in December 2024. 

Multiple media outlets and the prosecution opposed the suppression order, with media lawyer Justin Quill describing Carr’s attempt to keep his identity hidden as extraordinary. 

The order was granted and should have expired at the conclusion of Carr’s trial on Friday, when he was remanded in custody after being found guilty of two counts of rape and one of sexual assault. 

However, Mr Dann argued there would be heightened risk to Carr’s mental health if his name were revealed and successfully applied for an interim gag order. 

Over that period, Carr’s name was leaked on social media and in online forums.

On Monday, Mr Dann informed the court that Carr no longer wished to pursue the order and it was revoked. 

1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)

National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028