Pub assault court cases, Sunshine Coast’s most dangerous suburbs listed
As Sunshine Coast clubs and pubs battle with managing the risks of violent incidents we can reveal where the assaults are occurring and who is behind them.
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There is no shortage of precincts and venues that provide nightlife fun for residents of the Sunshine Coast, but some of them have become hotspots for violence.
According to Queensland Police data, the region recorded 1004 assaults in 2020 with the numbers jumping significantly in 2021 to 1678 assaults.
We’ve broken down the stats on the most dangerous suburbs for assault offences across the Sunshine Coast and Noosa regions while also listing the pub and club assaults below that have recently come through court.
MOST DANGEROUS SUBURBS FOR ASSAULTS:
Maroochydore - 194 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Nambour - 138 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Buderim - 62 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Kawana - 54 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Caloundra - 54 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Beerwah - 44 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Mooloolaba - 47 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Bli Bli - 31 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Buddina - 28 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Yandina - 23 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Burnside - 23 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Palmwoods - 20 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Alexandra Headlands - 20 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Landsborough - 26 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Coolum Beach - 41 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Bokarina - 16 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Glass House Mountains - 16 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
Marcoola - 16 assaults from 28 March, 2021 to 27 March, 2022
CONVICTIONS RECORDED:
Paul William Jackson - Maleny
A Sunshine Coast mining head honcho inflicted a frenzied attack on an unsuspecting pub patron after he was told off for urinating near a Maleny venue on New Year’s Eve.
Paul William Jackson, now 50, was sentenced to a 15-month suspended sentence after he pleaded guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm in a public place while adversely affected by an intoxicating substance in Maleny on December 31, 2020.
The court heard Jackson or his friend had urinated in a bush near the outdoor area of a Maleny pub when the 49-year-old male victim made a comment about their behaviour.
“(The victim) was simply milling about … and then Mr Jackson quite deliberately and through a number of people came to him and hit him very hard a number of times,” Crown Prosecutor Greg Cummings said.
Mr Cummings said the “powerful blows” had an immediate effect on the man who fell to the ground.
The court heard he suffered a broken nose, laceration, abrasion and ongoing snoring issues because of the attack.
Judge Glen Cash suspended the prison sentence for 15 months and ordered Jackson to complete 100 hours of community service.
He was ordered to pay $10,000 to the victim. A conviction was recorded.
Samson Kenneth Hoek - Ocean St Maroochydore
A Bellmere roofer spent his 21st birthday in court after he was sentenced for assaulting two police officers on a night out in Ocean St, Maroochydore.
Samson Kenneth Hoek got himself into strife when the police who were patrolling the precinct on December 27, 2020, tried to arrest one of his friends.
Hoek got in the way and was trying to push past the police, Magistrate Matthew McLaughlin told the court in 2021.
“One of the officers was trying to hold you and you started flailing around and struck him in the forehead with enough force that you opened his forehead up,” Mr McLaughlin said.
“There was blood pouring out of his head and there was a pretty nasty looking cut on his head which would have been very distressing to him.”
In the struggle, another officer came over to assist and he too was struck by the defendant, but was not as badly injured as the first policeman.
Samson Hoek pleaded guilty in Maroochydore Murri Court to two counts of obstructing police, assaulting a police officer and serious assault of a police officer.
Hoek was given six months’ jail, suspended for 18 months for the serious assault.
He was ordered to pay $1000 in compensation and a conviction was recorded.
Natasha Rose Gayler and Julian David Jeffrey Blackburn - The Alex Hotel Alexandra Heads
Two young friends were given suspended jail terms after they bashed a man in Alexandra Headland during a night out drinking.
Natasha Rose Gayler, 22 and Julian David Jeffrey Blackburn, 24, pleaded guilty in June of 2021 to assaulting a 47-year-old man and causing him bodily harm near The Alex Hotel in Alexandra Headland.
The police prosecutor told Maroochydore Magistrates Court the two friends had been out drinking for Gayler’s 22nd birthday and had arguments with the victim throughout the night.
CCTV footage played before the court showed the pair later approaching the man and punching him until he fell on the ground.
Blackburn continued to punch him while he was on the ground before the man was able to get up.
He was then punched a few more times by the pair until security intervened.
Gayler, who had no criminal history, was convicted and sentenced to 12 months in jail, which was wholly suspended for 18 months.
Blackburn was convicted and sentenced to 14 months in jail which was wholly suspended for three years.
Gayler was also ordered to pay $500 in compensation to the victim, while Blackburn was ordered to pay $2000.
Catherine Jane Gale - Pub Mooloolaba
A woman who kicked, punched and slapped a staff member after refusing to check in at a Sunshine Coast pub said she was in the midst of a “horribly embarrassing bender”.
Catherine Jane Gale, 44, became agitated about having to complete a Covid check in and lashed out at Pub Mooloolaba staff on Boxing Day, 2020.
On New Year’s Day Gale also kicked a police officer in the groin after being arrested for carrying a knife in public.
When she refused to check in at Pub Mooloolaba, staff members called over a duty manager who “received a barrage of foul language” from Gale.
The manager was trying to calm her down when Gale punched her in the head and began kicking her feet.
Other staff members jumped in to remove Gale from the pub but she managed to turn and slap the manager in the face before pushing over a computer.
Gale faced Maroochydore Magistrates Court and pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer, common assault, possessing a knife in a public place, create a disturbance in a licenced premise and wilful damage.
Magistrate Rod Madsen sentenced Gale to 12 months probation and ordered her to pay the $130.30 offender levy to the court.
She was ordered to forfeit the knife. A conviction was recorded.
Glendon David McCauley - Duporth Ave Maroochydore
A 56-year-old homeless Sunshine Coast man faced court for performing a “donkey kick” on a watch house officer after being arrested for being a public nuisance.
The court heard Glendon David McCauley was “heavily intoxicated” when he started to cause a disturbance on Duporth Ave at Maroochydore around 6.30pm on November 22, 2021.
Police prosecutor Mark Burrell said McCauley was throwing objects onto the road and yelling, causing nearby witnesses to be “fearful” and contact police.
When police arrived, McCauley had left the area but officers later found him and arrested him.
At the watch house, the long-term alcoholic was being “belligerent” towards staff and refused to answer questions.
McCauley was restrained by staff before he “donkey kicked” one of the officers in the leg area, causing pain.
McCauley pleaded guilty to the two charges of assaulting a watch house officer and being drunk in a public place on Monday, January 17, 2022.
Magistrate Haydn Stjernqvist fined McCauley $800 and recorded convictions.
NO CONVICTIONS RECORDED:
Zac Arthur Bowles - Yandina Hotel
A father of three downed 12-15 beers before he slapped and headbutted an elderly man at the Yandina Hotel so hard he violently fell off his chair.
Zac Arthur Bowles, 33, was enjoying a meal with his family at the Yandina Hotel on September 3, 2021 when he assaulted the 76-year-old man.
Bowles’ children were causing a “ruckus” and according to him, the victim had told the defendant’s daughter to “shut the f--k up”, the Maroochydore Magistrates Court heard on Tuesday, December 7, 2021.
Police prosecutor James Allen said the victim was seated at the table when Bowles approached him in an aggressive and threatening manner.
Bowles struck the victim to the head and face area with an open hand in the form of a slap.
“The defendant advanced on the victim and headbutted him in the face causing him to fall backwards in his chair,” Senior Constable Allen said.
The elderly man suffered abrasions and a laceration to the top of his nose.
The plumber pleaded guilty to assault of a person over 60 and was given four months’ prison suspended for 12 months. No conviction was recorded.
Cameron James Crossan - Duporth Tavern Maroochydore
A man copped his punishment after threatening to rip a police officer’s throat out during a night out on the town.
Cameron James Crossan was yelling abuse at police, security guards and the public in the early hours of September 4, 2021, when he assaulted an officer in Maroochydore.
Crossan, who had just turned 18, yelled derogatory terms at police including “why don’t you just f--k off love you f---ing c--” and “I’ll f---ing kill you”.
Police prosecutor James Allen said Crossan was agitated and slurring his words during his violent outburst.
Police had confronted Crossan after they saw him being removed from the Duporth Tavern by a security guard.
Mr Allen said the 18-year-old was using an aggressive stance with clenched fists when police spotted him and he later challenged security officers to fight while standing on the road.
Before being taken to the watch-house, police were organising for Crossan to be taken home by his mother when he told her to go away and walked back towards the security guards with clenched fists.
Mr Allen said Crossan raised his right arm and struck down at a male officer who was able to block the blow with his arm.
Crossan pleaded guilty in Maroochydore Magistrates Court to five charges including assaulting a police officer, public nuisance near licensed premise and obstructing police.
Crossan was sentenced to a $1000 good behaviour bond for 18 months. No conviction was recorded.
Slade Dalton William Rasmussen - Duporth Tavern Maroochydore
A former bouncer learnt his fate after fronting court over a violent outburst at a popular Sunshine Coast pub which left a 21-year-old man off work for two weeks.
Slade Dalton William Rasmussen was sitting in a booth in the Duporth Tavern function area when he punched a 21-year-old man in the face twice at 10pm on New Year’s Eve, 2020.
On Monday Maroochydore District Court heard the victim retaliated by grabbing Rasmussen by the collar.
The pair wrestled to the ground before being removed by security.
Legal officer for prosecutions Sanaz Masoumi told the court the man suffered a 5cm cut above his left eyebrow that needed stitches as well as bruising and swelling.
The victim was forced to take two weeks off work for doctor’s appointments and suffered psychologically.
In an interview with police on January 21 Rasmussen, an ex-security guard, said he couldn’t remember why he attacked the man.
Rasmussen pleaded guilty in Maroochydore District Court to assault occasioning bodily harm in a public place while adversely affected by an intoxicating substance.
Rasmussen was sentenced to complete 100 hours of community service. No conviction was recorded.
Zack Danny Charlton - Duporth Tavern Maroochydore
A 23-year-old Warana bricklayer who “king hit” a bouncer near Ocean St was scolded for his “deplorable” and impulsive attack.
Punters were lining up at the Duporth Tavern in Maroochydore at midnight on October 31, 2021, when they witnessed Zack Danny Charlton attack a security guard.
Maroochydore Magistrates Court heard the 23-year-old had been in the company of several people who were attempting to start fights with security and other punters.
Police prosecutor Nick Nitschke said Charlton told security he wasn’t associated with them, however he was denied entry.
Witnesses said they saw Charlton strike the security guard without warning with a closed fist to his right ear.
Sergeant Nitschke said the Warana bricklayer was taken to the ground by security before police arrived.
Charlton pleaded guilty to public nuisance and was fined $800, with no conviction recorded.
Jason Dean Beeton and Kurt Anthony Gale - Palmwoods Hotel
A night out for two mates at a Sunshine Coast hinterland pub ended in a group trip to the cop shop following a pub brawl over a game of pool.
Jason Dean Beeton, 28, of Woombye and Kurt Anthony Gale, 30, of Ulverstone in Tasmania both pleaded guilty to public nuisance for their involvement in a fight on March 12, 2022, at the Palmwoods Hotel.
Maroochydore Magistrates Court heard Gale had been chipping pool balls at another group of people about 10.30pm before an all-in fight broke out.
Police prosecutor James Allen told the court Gale pushed another patron before taking several swings at security guards.
A mad scramble ensued between Gale, Beeton, security, the hotel duty manager and even a female staff member.
Mr Allen said Beeton intervened between Gale and the hotel duty manager at one point before shoving a security guard.
The pair both pleaded guilty to public nuisance while Beeton pleaded guilty to an additional charge of wilful damage of police property.
Both men were fined $800, while Beeton was fined an additional $500 for the damaged police car.
No convictions were recorded for either men.
Kahlan James Masri - Peak Nightclub Maroochydore
A night out on Ocean St turned violent for an innocent punter when a 25-year-old Mooloolaba man assaulted him in an unprovoked attack in Maroochydore.
Kahlan James Masri was sentenced to 40 hours’ community service and given an $880 fine for attacking a man outside the Peak nightclub in the early hours of October 10, 2021.
Police prosecutor Stuart Lydford said the victim was standing in line for the venue when the 25-year-old hospitality worker approached and punched him in the face.
Maroochydore Magistrates Court heard police witnessed the assault and intervened to arrest Masri.
The court heard Masri was drunk at the time and refused to go into the back of the police car after his arrest.
Duty lawyer Neesha Maidwell said the 25-year-old couldn’t recall what happened but said the victim wasn’t injured from the attack.
Masri pleaded guilty to public nuisance and obstructing police, with no convictions recorded.
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