Tewantin teen torture case: 14-year-old girl sentenced in court

Horrific new insight into the depth of degradation and hurt suffered by a teen at the centre of a viral TikTok torture video can be revealed after one of the 13-year-old’s attackers was sentenced.

The three girls, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, were charged in March after they allegedly invited a 13-year-old girl (pictured right) to a Tewantin home and allegedly prevented from leaving, allegedly filmed her while being assaulted, allegedly taunted and cut with a knife over the period of several hours.

A Sunshine Coast girl who was part of the trio who tortured another teen for hours at a Tewantin home has learnt her fate, while another one is facing fresh charges.

Two of the girls involved, a 15-year-old and a 14-year-old, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, had their sentences part-heard in the Maroochydore District Court on Monday, March 25 and appeared again on Wednesday, March 27.

They had pleaded guilty at an earlier date.

The 14-year-old girl had pleaded guilty to 47 charges including assault occasioning bodily harm, deprivation of liberty, enter dwelling and commit indictable offence, armed robbery while in company used personal violence and assault occasioning bodily harm while armed, in company.

The 15-year-old pleaded guilty to five charges including assault occasioning bodily harm, deprivation of liberty, enter dwelling and commit indictable offence, armed robbery while in company used personal violence and assault occasioning bodily harm while armed, in company.

The court heard the 15-year-old girl appeared in Maroochydore Magistrates Court earlier that day over two fresh charges of robbery using violence and breaching bail.

The alleged offences occurred on March 20 - not even a week before she was due to be sentenced - and she received bail on Wednesday.

Judge Gary Long adjourned her matters to April 22 in consideration the fresh charges may affect her sentencing.

The 14-year-old girl remained in court on video link for sentencing.

Crown prosecutor Rebecca Marks said on Monday the pair had “lured” a 13-year-old girl, who had known the girls for several years but only recently befriended them, to their Tewantin home under false pretences on March 11, 2023.

Ms Marks said the girl was tortured for four hours.

The court was told they punched her in the head, pulled her hair, spat on her, threatened and cut her with a knife, attempted to smash bottles over her head and forced her to lick their feet.

The 13-year-old was also subject to verbal abuse including being called “stinky b – ch” and “the ugliest thing (they) had ever seen”, and had her hands bound with a cord so she could not defend herself from the violence.

Ms Marks said the girl was not allowed to leave, they recorded the torture and took “before pics”, before she was assaulted.

The girl was only let go after she reluctantly agreed to fight the 15-year-old, which ended with the girl being assaulted again.

Ms Marks said after the torture, the girls walked the 13-year-old girl home to make sure she didn’t “snitch” on them.

Judge Long told the court on Wednesday the girls threatened to kill her family and “touch up” her younger brother.

They then invited themselves into the girl’s home, despite her asking them to leave, and waited for the 13-year-old’s mother to come home.

They also stole several of the girl’s belongings from her bedroom, the court was told.

The court was told the girl was told to tell a fake story of how she got her injuries, and that she was jumped by an unknown group.

When the girl’s mother came home, one of the teens told her the fake story.

The court was told the pair said they would kill the girl’s family if she did not comply.

Ms Marks said the girls then accompanied the 13-year-old and her mother to the hospital to ensure the girl didn’t “snitch”.

The girl eventually revealed the truth to her mother and, on March 13, an arrest warrant was issued.

Ms Marks said shortly after the 14-year-old was arrested, she sent a photo to the victim, giving her the finger.

A short video of the torture was shared to social media, along with a video the 14-year-old girl had posted calling the events “funny as f--k”.

Judge Long told the court on Wednesday of the 14-year-old girl’s further offences which occurred prior to the torture incident.

He said the girl visited the Sunshine Plaza and threatened violence to a shopper in order to steal their shoes, and then took the bus in company of her younger sister and other teenagers.

The court heard her younger sister began punching another teen in the head unprovoked, and the 14-year-old joined in as others filmed the incident.

The following day, she returned to the Sunshine Plaza with friends and asked a group of teenagers for a vape, then followed and shoved them towards the food court.

One of her friends launched himself against one teenager in the group and took him to the ground, where the 14-year-old kicked the victim twice in the head, the court heard.

Judge Long then addressed the 37 offences which occurred when the 14-year-old girl was on bail for charges relating to the torture.

He said 27 of the charges were varying breaches of bail and several incidents of driving stolen cars.

One incident involved the girl and her friends stopping a stolen car by a house with an open garage as someone had just come home, the court heard.

Judge Long said they rummaged through a car parked in the garage and then stole a scooter from another residence.

Judge Long sentenced the 14-year-old girl to two years detention suspended and put her on three years’ probation.

Ms Marks said the 13-year-old “only wanted to be (their) friend” and their actions against her were “entirely unprovoked and cowardly”.

Barrister for the 15-year-old, Simon Lewis, said on Monday his client had a lack of relationship with her parents and had a tumultuous childhood growing up, which had contributed to issues maintaining relationships and emotional regulation.

He said she began smoking marijuana at 12-years-old and engaging with a rough crowd after disassociating from school.

He alleged she had been assaulted while in youth detention, but she was willing to better herself through rehab and other support programs.

Barrister for the 14-year-old Laura Reece said her client had suffered a traumatic childhood, having witnessed violence and being the victim of violence herself in her own home, witnessing substance abuse and experiencing intergenerational trauma.

Ms Reece said her client had begun drinking when she was 10 and later began abusing it.

She said shortly after the torture, she and her family were exposed to dangerous situations including racist flyers openly identifying her and their home being firebombed.

Her time in custody had been a “sobering” experience, Ms Reece told the court.