Man dragged from Gympie region pub after ‘bloody’ outburst

The man was calling people at the pub “paedophiles” during a game of pool that escalated.

A man was dragged out of the Kilkivan Hotel after a violent outburst. Photo: Shane Zahner

A man wh0 had a violent outburst and caused a scene at the Kilkivan Hotel while playing a game of pool was tackled and dragged outside by a patron.

David Edward Byrne, 45, began calling people at the pub “paedophiles” after being upset with a game of pool on December 2, last year about 8pm.

He was seen pushing the hotel owner before he was tackled by a patron and dragged outside where he wiped blood on a vehicle from his grazed knee and lay down on the road, Gympie Magistrates Court heard recently.

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When police arrived, the father of three refused to tell them his name and struggled with them.

He also refused medical help from paramedics, but was eventually taken to hospital when he thought he might be having a heart attack, the court heard.

At the hospital he ripped off monitoring equipment and police were forced to restrain him.

His lawyer said Byrne, an Irish national, suffered PTSD from being stabbed and assaulted in Ireland in 1998.

“He is highly embarrassed and remorseful,” she told the court.

She said he had been visiting a friend in Kilkivan and was staying at the hotel when he saw behaviour towards a child that triggered his outburst.

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“He is a man of otherwise good character,” she said.

The magistrate called his behaviour appalling and out of character and noted his clean history.

He was ordered to serve 100 hours of community service within 12 months.

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