'Vigilante' dad beats daughter's friend with bat

Wielding a baseball bat, an angry dad made a young man sit on a chair before beating him.

PERSONAL STRESS: Andrew Bale leaves Ipswich District Court after admitting to assault.

WIELDING a baseball bat, an angry dad made a young man sit on a chair before beating him.

An Ipswich court heard the father had accused the 21-year-old of inappropriate behaviour towards his daughter.

The dad, builder James Bale, strongly denied an accusation that he lured the younger man out to his rural property near Plainland with the intent of assaulting him.

Bale refused to later tell investigating police the identities of two other men who joined in the assault.

His behaviour was labelled "vigilante" in nature by Ipswich judge Dennis Lynch.

James Roderick Bale, 51, pleaded guilty in the District Court at Ipswich to assault causing bodily harm to the young man on January 24 while armed with an offensive instrument/and in company; and wilfully and unlawfully damaging a mobile phone.

Crown prosecutor Farook Anoozer said the young man was a friend of Bale's daughter who contacted him, arranging for him to come out to their house.

When the victim arrived in his ute, Bale blocked him in with his own car, then reached inside the ute and took the keys. Bale briefly went inside and walked out holding a metal baseball bat in one hand and a black metal pipe in the other.

Mr Anoozer said Bale began to hit the man with the bat while he was seated on a chair.

The man had put up his arms yelling to Bale to stop.

He had been struck five or six times.

The court heard the victim was taken to another area where two other men began to assault him.

He fell to the ground twice before managing to run back to his ute. Mr Anoozer said Bale asked the man if he had any messages or photos on his mobile phone from his daughters.

Bale took the phone and smashed it.

The man drove to Ipswich Hospital where his injuries, including a fractured eye socket and bruises to his arms and torso, were treated.

Bale had no criminal history and the Crown sought a jail term of 12 to 18 months, with the sentence suspended after serving six months.

Defence barrister Scott Neaves said Bale had since shown remorse at into his actions.

Judge Lynch said if Bale had concerns about the victim's behaviour towards his daughter, he should have taken it to the police instead of taking the law into his own hands.

Mr Neaves said Bale, a licensed builder, was under financial and personal stress at the time, with recent deaths in the family.

"His mind was very disordered at the time. Disordered thinking," he said.

Judge Lynch said what was concerning is that some aspects of the case may show it to be a premeditated attack.

He said what happened to the victim was, "a most terrifying and frightening experience for him".

"He was alone at the mercy of three men."

Bale was sentenced to 18 months' jail, suspended for three years in which he must be of good behaviour. He was ordered to pay $5000 compensation to his victim.

STATEMENT: Bat bashing the worst day of my life

THE VICTIM'S mother read out a victim impact statement to the court, which in part said: "I can't explain how terrifying it felt. I was frightened beyond belief. I begged you not to hit me but you did.

"(You) told me to walk where your two mates were. They were yelling, grabbing at me and hit me on the side of the face. I fell to the ground. He pulled me up by my hair until I was standing again then proceeded to hit around the face, over and over again until I fell.

"I was bleeding to the face from my beating. A split lip, fractured eye socket, my teeth were hurting. And you smashed my new phone. I lived in fear of you turning up at my house.

"That day was the worst day of my life."