Paulini Curuenavuli has been the picture of stoicism during the current season of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! and has typically maintained a pristine public image in the years since she appeared on Australian Idol.
However, the singer has opened up about one misstep that she described as having “soul breaking” consequences. Getting candid with her fellow I’m a Celeb castmates, Paulini revealed that she had a criminal record as a result of purchasing a fake drivers licence.
Describing the turn of events, which unfolded in 2017, Paulini said, “I did something really silly. I bribed a government official… I bought a fake licence.” Despite the fact that the scandal had made headlines at the time it occurred, many of her castmates appeared shocked by the news.
Elaborating further, Paulini explained, “I was on my Ls… And I just didn’t want to wait, so I bought a licence. It was soul-breaking and spirit-breaking because I was thinking about my family and how I made my family look, how I made myself look. I just made a really bad decision and I absolutely regret it. So I got a criminal record.”
The decision resulted in the singer’s upcoming work being cancelled, her receiving a large fine and making less than desirable front-page news.
Recalling the moment she found out that her life was about to be turned upside down, Paulini said, “The worst thing was, is that I was… I’d just finished a show in Brisbane. I remember it clearly. And I was walking back to my hotel and I got the phone call. They said, ‘Just letting you know, you’re on the front page of the paper tomorrow.’”
According to court documents, Paulini paid a Roads and Maritime Services employee $850 in exchange for an unrestricted driver’s licence — a crime for which she was given a six-month suspended sentence.
“It’s hard to make a mistake for someone who’s in the public eye because people are watching. You’ve got to keep going. You can’t let this break you. And that’s pretty much what I did. All of my gigs after Bodyguard — all cancelled,” Paulini said.
The singer has previously gotten canid during I’m a Celebrity, revealing that she had been the victim of pervasive racially motivated bullying in primary school, which resulted in her refusal to return to the premises to give a talk after her stint on Australia Idol.