Teen bashed at Garden City Busway waiting for school bus

A Brisbane schoolboy’s nose has been broken during a vicious robbery on Tuesday, the second time in 48 hours youths have hospitalised pre-teens for their devices near a popular Westfield.

A young student from Brisbane’s southside has been transported to Queensland Children’s Hospital with facial injuries, including a suspected broken nose, after he was allegedly set upon at a major busway by a group of Logan youths while waiting for a school bus on Tuesday morning.

Police say a 13-year-old boy from Wishart was waiting for a school bus at the Garden City Busway when he was approached by a group of six Logan boys aged between 11–14 about 7.45am on Tuesday morning.

One of the boys allegedly demanded the victim hand over his mobile phone, to which the victim refused.

Garden City Busway. Picture: Google Maps

The victim was then allegedly punched and kicked by the group and knocked to the ground, where he was kicked in the face and suffered a suspected broken nose, cuts and bruising, although he managed to retain possession of his phone.

After the failed theft, the alleged juvenile offenders boarded a Brisbane City Council bus in an attempt to flee the scene, but were arrested by police from Upper Mount Gravatt and taken into custody.

Six boys, aged 11, 12, 13, 13, 14 and 14 from Marsden, Crestmead and Waterford West are being investigated by the South Brisbane District Child Protection Unit for charges of robbery in company with personal violence, police confirmed.

An 11-year-old Marsden boy and 13-year-old Waterford West boy have been charged with

charged with attempted robbery in company with personal violence and assault occasioning bodily harm in company.

The four other children were released without charge.

A QAS spokesman confirmed paramedics answered a call at 8am this morning at Macgregor St, Upper Mount Gravatt, where they transported a teenage boy to Queensland Children’s Hospital in a stable condition with facial injuries.

Westfield Garden City. Photo: Kristy Muir

It comes as the officer-in-charge of the police station whose officers attended this morning’s robbery warns juvenile offenders are targeting infrastructure like shopping centres and public spaces in his police division to perpetrate violent thefts.

Upper Mount Gravatt Police Officer in Charge Senior Sergeant Murray Crone said Tuesday morning’s bashing was the second alleged violent robbery committed in the vicinity of Westfield Garden City in the space of 48 hours.

On Sunday afternoon about 3.30pm, a 12-year-old Hemmant boy was assaulted and robbed of his AirPods by a group of juvenile offenders while walking through Westfield Garden City, Snr Sgt Crone said.

The victim was thrown on the ground, punched and kicked, and suffered non-life threatening head injuries requiring hospital treatment.

Police from Upper Mt Gravatt located the offenders at nearby Palmdale Shopping Centre in possession of the victim’s property.

A 13-year-old Durack boy was charged with robbery in company with personal violence.

The offender was refused bail and appeared in Brisbane Children’s Court on Tuesday.

Investigations are continuing, Snr Sgt Crone said, regarding two female associates of the alleged offender, aged 13 and 14.

“We are experiencing some issues with youth crime, particularly stealing with violence in and around shopping centres and public spaces,” Snr Sgt Crone told the Southern Star.

“I want to highlight in both cases the age of the (alleged) offenders and the level of violence being used.

“Upper Mount Gravatt police division attracts larger numbers of juvenile offenders due to featuring large shopping and transport hubs.

“A large percentage of juvenile offenders are recidivist, who are the subject of court and community orders, and bail and curfew conditions.

“As a police division, Upper Mount Gravatt are working closely with other sectors, NGO and government agencies to ensure our streets and public spaces are safe, as well as participating in meaningful prevention and diversion strategies.”