Clifford Benjamin Heading pleaded guilty to wounding his mother at Gympie District Court

A Gympie man’s bizarre outburst where he burnt a Wi-Fi box and slashed his mother’s arm with a knife has been revealed in court.

Clifford Benjamin Heading appeared at Gympie District Court and pleaded guilty to charges of serious assault and wounding. May 10, 2023.

Details of a Gympie man’s aggressive outburst towards his own mother, where he slashed her with a knife, have been revealed in court.

Clifford Benjamin Heading, 31, appeared in Gympie District Court on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to charges of serious assault and wounding, along with contravention of a police order and dangerous drug possession.

The court was told that on August 4, 2022, Heading was living with his 62-year-old mother when he displayed strange and erratic behaviour as he burned the Wi-Fi box because he believed it was evil.

His mother had retreated into her bedroom but Heading went in, picked her up, threw her on the bed and pinned her down and left, crown prosecutor Alex Stark said.

In the evening she was in her room, and he came in again, threw her on the bed and when she waved her arms around to defend herself, not realising he had a knife, he cut her finger, Mr Stark said.

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Clifford Benjamin Heading appeared at Gympie District Court and pleaded guilty to charges of serious assault and wounding. May 10, 2023.

Ten minutes later, he came into her bedroom with a 20cm kitchen knife holding it above her saying “it’s got to be done” and lacerating her forearm five centimetres, the court heard.

His mother managed to run away from the house and call triple-0. When the police came he struggled and had to be placed in a cell by himself. It appeared to the police officer at the watch-house Heading was under the influence of drugs, the court heard.

Heading claimed he had stopped taking his antipsychotic medicine prior to the incident and had been using meth and cannabis once a fortnight, the court heard.

In custody Heading had been seeing a doctor for his mental health, the court heard.

His mother and father were in the courtroom supporting him, ready for him to be released into his father’s care, Mr Stark noted to the court.

He previously worked as a landscaper and in an aboittor, and while he had a history of petty crimes, this was his first time in custody, the court heard.

Details of his mental health history were not apparent as he did not disclose them to the court, his defence lawyer Amelia Loode said.

Judge Katherine McGinness told Heading he was very lucky to have a family supporting him, despite the hurt he had caused his mother.

For the serious assault charges he was sentenced to two and half years’ probation, for wounding, two and a half years’ prison, including serving 271 days pre-sentence custody and a suspended sentence.

For contravening a police order and possession of dangerous drugs, a conviction was recorded.