Abbie Chatfield has confessed to making false and damaging statements about a former close friend, claiming she wrongly accused him of supporting violence and harming children.
A social media influencer has agreed to pay $79,000 to Heath Kelley, a law student and former Virgin Australia employee, following a court judgment.
In addition to other expenses, the court has ordered Chatfield to cover Mr. Kelley’s legal fees, estimated at $30,000. This brings her total financial obligation to over $100,000.
Okay, so this woman, Chatfield, was saying things about Mr. Kelley online, and he was *furious*. His lawyers had to send her a legal notice – basically telling her everything she said was a lie and she had no defense! And now, he’s actually *suing* her for ruining his reputation! I mean, can you believe it? It’s about time someone stood up to her! I’ve been saying all along those comments were totally unfair and damaging, and now he’s proving it!
Chatfield didn’t dispute the allegations, and on Thursday afternoon, Judge Wendy Abraham formally approved the orders with Chatfield’s agreement.
On May 7th around 5:30 PM, a 30-year-old Instagram user with approximately 550,000 followers posted untrue and damaging statements about Mr. Kelley on her Instagram Stories.
Chatfield publicly expressed support for Adam Bandt, the Greens leader, after he lost his seat in Melbourne to Sarah Witty of the Labor party in the 2025 federal election.
Mr. Kelley, a schoolmate of Chatfield’s since around 2011, sent her a private message with a video and a comment about Mr. Bandt.
Chatfield and Mr. Kelley continued their conversation privately, and Chatfield later shared the messages with her audience.
Chatfield: ‘Why are you sending me this.. ? Are you pro Israel? Gross.’
Mr. Kelley shared news about a politician losing their seat, expressing relief and stating he believes the Jewish community in Melbourne will feel safer as a result.
He added that, as someone who supports LGBTQ+ and women’s rights, he supports Israel, having visited the region twice.
Chatfield: ‘Okay so you’ve lost the plot. By (sic) dude lmao.’
The former Bachelor star then shared screenshots of her conversation with Mr. Kelley on her Instagram Stories, publicly naming and tagging his account.
She shared a post expressing disbelief that an old high school acquaintance – someone she clearly isn’t close to anymore – had contacted her. They hadn’t spoken in at least three years, and hadn’t really connected for six or seven years before that.
Someone who supports harmful ideologies is now strangely criticizing me because a compassionate and left-leaning politician almost lost an election.
This is deeply unpleasant and reveals a lot about the person saying it, particularly their lack of understanding and compassion. Claiming that Adam Bandt poses a danger to anyone is completely unreasonable.
It’s disturbing to learn that this person apparently supports harming children and is willing to cut ties with people over it. This behavior is extremely concerning and unusual.
Chatfield and Mr Kelley were once so close that their relationship sparked romance rumours.
In 2019, the couple gained attention from tabloid newspapers after appearing in a suggestive video online. In the video, Chatfield danced closely with Kelley, saying, ‘I love this song and I love this man.’
Chatfield, recently a contestant on The Bachelor, immediately dismissed rumors of a romantic relationship with Kelley, clarifying that he’s been a close friend for a decade.
Mr. Kelley’s lawsuit identified Chatfield as a popular figure known for her work on social media, television, and radio.
The statement alleged that Chatfield accused Mr. Kelley of supporting violence against women and gay men in Palestine, including the killing of children and acts of genocide.
On the same day she made the false statements, Chatfield posted another video to her Stories continuing to criticize Mr. Kelley.
She continued, saying, “Honestly, I’m not surprised you turned into someone who posts inflammatory right-wing content online. It feels like that was always where you were headed…”
I clearly underestimated how problematic you are, which is why I ended our friendship. And frankly, the people you associate with are completely unhinged.
I want to be clear: Heath Kelley supports genocide. If you’re friends with him, especially if you went to high school with him, please think about whether you want to continue that friendship.
Chatfield’s Story remained visible on her Instagram account until at least 1.15pm on May 8.
Mr. Kelley claimed that comments made by Chatfield could seriously damage his reputation, because she has a large number of followers on Instagram.
The two former friends had a large overlap in their Instagram followers—roughly 130 to 150 mutual connections. This suggests the Story was likely seen by a substantial portion of Mr. Kelley’s online social circle.
Mr. Kelley also accused Chatfield of violating his privacy by sharing their personal conversations publicly.
As a lifestyle expert, I’ve seen firsthand how damaging false narratives can be. In this case, the publication of this story has really harmed Mr. Kelley’s personal and professional life. He’s experienced public humiliation, damage to his reputation, and a lot of emotional distress, and unfortunately, these negative effects are likely to continue. It’s a truly unfortunate situation where someone’s character has been unfairly attacked and their life significantly impacted.
Mr. Kelley argued that the damage to his reputation was made worse by Chatfield sharing his private messages, identifying him by name, and tagging his personal Instagram account.
Chatfield made the situation worse by having her lawyer send a letter to Mr. Kelley’s lawyers on May 30th, following a notice of concern.
The letter described Mr. Kelley’s warning as a form of “extortion” and claimed he was trying to profit from his previous relationship with Ms. Chatfield.
Mr. Kelley’s letter explained that he and Chatfield were close friends until 2021, and that during this time, Chatfield was part of their client’s social circle, frequently socializing with them in both groups and individually.
The friendship involved several instances of support, including driving you to the hospital in Brisbane, celebrating your birthday in 2020, sharing accommodation with you that same year, and talking about your finances.
You and this person both lived in Sydney for a while, and your friendship gradually faded. You stayed in touch with friendly but infrequent messages on Instagram until 2022.
While you were right to say you and our client hadn’t spoken for three years, your claim that you hadn’t talked for ‘maybe six or seven years’ before that was completely untrue.
Okay, so the letter said Kelley never actually *posted* anything about the conflict online, which is so weird. But apparently, he told Chatfield he was pro-Israel, and the reason was… get this… because he’s a supporter of gay and women’s rights! I mean, can you believe that? It’s such a specific reason, and it just makes me want to know *everything* about what he was thinking. It’s fascinating!
The letter also accused Chatfield of hypocrisy, pointing out that she called Mr. Kelley a troll while simultaneously launching a public attack on him in front of her large social media audience.
Since appearing on The Bachelor, Sophie Monk has continued to be a popular television personality. She’s been on shows like Bachelor in Paradise and I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, hosted Love Island Afterparty, and served as a panelist on The Masked Singer.
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