Ashley James McInnes pleads guilty to assault at Gympie, Qld

A regional Qld man got more than he bargained for when he bashed and whipped another man, only to get stabbed in the response to the unprovoked attack.

A 27-year-old man got more than he bargained for when he bashed and whipped another man, only to get stabbed in the response to the unprovoked attack.

A 27-year-old Gympie man got more than he bargained for when he bashed and whipped another man, only to get stabbed in the response to the unprovoked attack.

Gympie Magistrates Court heard on October 19, 2024, Ashley James McInnes and another unnamed person went to a home the victim was at in the city to collect property belonging to a woman they both knew.

Police Prosecutor Mel Campbells said McInnes, who appeared by videolink, initially asked for the keys to the garage, which the victim threw at his feet, before then demanding his phone to see if there were any pictures of the woman on it.

The victim responded “what?”, at which point McInnes kicked him in the chest, knocking him to the ground.

Sgt Campbell said the 27-year-old then stomped on the man’s head and kicked his chest at least a dozen times.

The court also heard McInnes whipped the man with an unidentified weapon, and he was left with a mild concussion and abrasions to his nose and forehead, and had to be taken to hospital.

Gympie Magistrates Court heard on October 19, 2024, Ashley James McInnes and another unnamed person went to the a home the victim was at in the city to collect property belonging to a woman they both knew.

He was not the only one in need of treatment following the “unprovoked” attack, though.

The court heard McInnes’s victim stabbed the 27-year-old with a knife during the attack, leaving him need of a blood transfusion and stitches.

His mother also submitted a letter to the court saying his time in jail was “doing more harm than good” and he was “trying very hard to stay out of trouble” and “a good person by nature”.

Magistrate Bevan Hughes said while his mother “genuinely believes that”, the problem was McInnes committed this latest assault while on parole for similar offending he was given 18 months’ jail for.

The court heard he had been out of prison for only three months before the attack.

He accepted McInnes’ guilty plea to one count of assault occasioning bodily harm while armed and in company, and accepted his injuries from being stabbed were extra curial punishment.

McInnes was sentenced to two years jail, with a parole eligibility date of January 27, 2025.