Townsville trio’s violent carpark attack at Willows Shopping Centre
Three juvenile offenders have been sentenced for their involvement in an attack on a woman at Willows Shopping Centre that resulted in her being taken to hospital.
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A group of juveniles, all 13 at the time, got into a stolen car after they watched the driver of the car be bashed at a shopping centre car park.
The trio, who appeared in Townsville District Court on Monday, sat in the dock smiling and giggling at one another throughout the course of their sentence.
On August 18 last year, the main offender, a girl that had been charged separately, allegedly approached a woman at Willows car park and demanded the woman hand over her car keys and money.
When the woman said she didn’t have any money to give her, the girl allegedly hit her in the face causing her to fall back onto the ground where the juvenile continued to bash her by hitting her head, crown prosecutor Thomasina Papadimitriou said.
She said the trio of kids which included one girl and two boys were watching nearby before they got into the victim’s car and drove off.
The victim was taken to hospital after suffering swelling to her face.
Ms Papadimitriou said the kids were arrested at separate times in the days that followed – two of them were taken into custody after police used a tyre deflation device to stop the car.
She said the victim did not wish to participate in a Restorative Justice program.
One boy, now 14, had an 11 page juvenile history with 110 offences total and half of them being breaches of bail.
He had previously been sentenced for holding a knife to a man who was whipper snippering the front yard of his residential care, and sentenced to community service and in separate offences sentenced to probation for stealing and unlawful use charges.
The crown said it was concerning that his pre-sentence report documented his lack of remorse for his crimes.
“He appears to have normalised perceptions of criminalized behaviours,” Ms Papadimitriou said.
His defence lawyer Kellie Mythen instructed by Rennick Lawyers said he suffered the loss of his seven-year-old sister two years prior, and it was due to an “adverse childhood” and “anti-social peer groups” that he was committing offences.
The second juvenile, a 13-year-old girl, had a history with four prior offences and had already been sentenced to community service.
Her lawyer, Jessica Hyne, instructed by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Legal Services, said the girl was one of eight children, and had no contact with her father however her mother was supporting her in the courtroom.
The third juvenile, a 14-year-old boy, had a 12 page history and was labeled a “prolific property offender” and was reported as being diagnosed with alcohol fetal syndrome and ADHD.
In 2024 he was sentenced to 15 months detention suspended on a conditional release after he performed an illegal U-turn in a stolen vehicle filled with eight kids and ran over a motorcyclist leaving him with life-altering injuries.
His lawyer Michael Hibble instructed by Rennick Lawyers said the boy had gone into the care of the department at the age of two and was described as being at a “heightened state of vulnerability” when it came to being influenced by others.
Mr Hibble also said the boy had attempted to apply for bail following his father’s death in October last year to attend the funeral and it was rejected.
Judge Anthony Rafter SC sentenced the trio who each pleaded guilty to armed robbery with personal violence in company and unlawful use of a motor vehicle in company and emphasised, had the crimes been committed following the legislation changes, they would be facing much harsher sentences.
The first juvenile boy was sentenced to 265 days detention, with the 265 days he had already spent in custody being declared as time already served. No convictions were recorded.
The girl was sentenced to 12 months’ probation. No convictions were recorded.
And the last boy was sentenced to 264 days detention, with the 264 days he already spent in custody being declared as time already served. No convictions were recorded.
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Originally published as Townsville trio’s violent carpark attack at Willows Shopping Centre
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