Cayden Troy Hele accused of grievous bodily harm, assault at Cotton Tree Park

A group of friends celebrating a birthday was allegedly punched by a young landscaper in an unprovoked attack at a popular park in the middle of the night.

Cayden Troy Hele. Picture: Facebook

A young landscaper accused of punching a group of partygoers two years after he was sentenced for similar offending has been denied bail.

Aroona man Cayden Troy Hele, 20, sat alert and upright on videolink in the Maroochydore Magistrates Court on August 5 as lawyer Rod Morgan applied for bail on his behalf.

Mr Hele has been charged with three counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, one of attempted robbery using violence and one of stealing.

He was also charged from the bench on Monday with grievous bodily harm with court document notes stating one of the assault occasioning bodily harm charges may be discontinued in its place.

The court heard the incident occurred at Cotton Tree Park in Maroochydore on August 4.

Police prosecutor James Allen told the court one of the alleged victims had been taken to Sunshine Coast University Hospital for a fractured jaw and has now been transferred to Brisbane to further inspect his injuries.

According to court documents the three alleged victims had spent a night out at Maroochydore to celebrate a birthday and sat down on playground equipment at Cotton Tree Park after midnight.

The trio had heard a man allegedly shouting “shut the f--- up I’m trying to have a conversation over here” but they didn’t respond, documents state.

The man, later identified by police as Mr Hele, had approached the group when they were about to leave, allegedly saying “do you guys speak English, do you speak f---ing English,” before police claim he struck one of the men in the face.

The victim fell backwards before Mr Hele allegedly asked if they had any money on them and punched the victim again when the group responded they weren’t looking for trouble

“Do you have any money, what have you got,” Mr Hele allegedly said.

Mr Hele then allegedly punched the second victim who fell before striking the first victim a third time as the other victim was “begging” saying they did not want trouble.

The third victim was then also punched in the face twice by a co-accused juvenile who allegedly came from behind the group.

After the trio managed to walk away, the third victim realised he did not have his phone and after tracking the device through an app, they noticed the phone was moving through the nearby caravan park and onto the beach.

Police were called and conducted a search, finding Mr Hele sitting on the beach with the victim’s phone allegedly hidden under his bottom.

Mr Allen told the court on Monday Mr Hele was on a suspended sentence and probation for grievous bodily harm, assault occasioning bodily harm and common assault offences in 2022.

Mr Morgan said Mr Hele works as a landscaper and would live with his family if he were granted bail.

He told the court there was little evidence pointing to the identification of the alleged offender being Mr Hele as he was identified through photo boards by the victims.

Magistrate Chris Callaghan refused bail and set the matter for committal mention on September 27.

No pleas were entered.