Robert Yves Tissot convicted of common assault for ‘gratuitous’ assault of women at Gladstone waterhole

The full story behind a viral video showing a fuming father punching two women in the face following a dog attack at a Gladstone waterhole can be revealed after the man responsible was sentenced in a Bundaberg court. DETAILS, VIDEO.

Details of a viral waterhole assault in which a Deepwater father punched two women in the face were heard in Bundaberg Magistrates Court on Friday.

Robert Yves Tissot, 43, pleaded guilty to two charges of common assault in relation to an incident at a Gladstone waterhole that was filmed by one of the victims and subsequently went viral on social media.

Police prosecutor Leon Casey told the court that at about 2pm on Thursday, January 24, Tissot was at Blackman’s Gap waterhole in the Gladstone region along with a couple known to him who owned a dog.

The court heard Tissot's 'gratuitous' assault by punching two women in the face was worsened by the act occurring in front of children.

At one point the dog owned by Tissot’s associates became involved in a fight with another dog, with the latter dog’s owner restraining it to stop the attack.

The male dog owner known to Tissot then punched the other dog, which prompted a woman to verbally abuse him and another woman to start filming the incident with her phone, the court heard.

Tissot’s female associate approached the latter woman to try to stop her from filming, which led to a fight erupting between Tissot’s associate and three other women.

Mr Casey told the court Tissot came up a hill towards the scene of the altercation and punched the three women who were fighting with his associate, which stopped the fight.

Tissot then punched two of the women in the face causing them to fall to the ground before another person intervened to stop that fight from escalating further, the court heard.

Police met with Tissot at his home on February 11 and showed him the video of the fight, with Tissot denying any involvement although admitting having gone to the waterhole previously.

Mr Casey told the court Tissot’s assault of the two women was “a gratuitous act of violence”, worsened because it was done in front of children who were also present at the waterhole.

Tissot’s defence lawyer, Rian Dwyer, objected to the description of Tissot’s actions as “gratuitous violence”, saying his client had become involved in an ongoing altercation in order to defend his friend, although conceding that he had “stepped over the line” once that fight had been brought under control.

The magistrate ordered Tissot pay a total of $1500 in fines and compensation.

The court heard Tissot had no significant criminal history and had worked as a floor and wall tiler on the Gold Coast including running his own business for about seven years, before moving to Brisbane where he did some stonemason work for about three years.

He moved to a 40-acre property in Deepwater in 2022, which he was currently in the process of preparing to grow crops, the court heard.

Tissot had been married for 17 years, with his wife supporting him in court, and had two children aged 20 and 17.

Tissot was fined $1000 and ordered to pay $250 compensation to each of the two female victims.

A charge of assault occasioning bodily harm was dismissed due to no evidence being offered by the prosecution.

Convictions were not recorded.

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