Anthony Daniel Rajek facing sentencing over attempted murder of homeless man in Brisbane CBD

A man who stabbed a homeless stranger in the neck in Brisbane’s busiest shopping district has been described by a judge as “a menace to the community who will remain so for life”, unless an explanation for his actions can be found.

Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall. Photo Steve Pohlner

A judge has described a man who stabbed a homeless stranger in the neck in Brisbane’s busiest shopping district as “prowling the streets … giving every appearance of being on what I call a hunting expedition”.

Justice Peter Callaghan added that if no explanation could be given about the actions of Anthony Daniel Rajek on January 15, 2022, then he wondered “how it could ever be put that the community could ever be safe from this man”.

He made the comments about Rajek, who was in the Supreme Court on Friday in a hearing set down for his sentencing after a jury convicted him of attempted murder over the 3.30am attack in Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall.

Justice Callaghan told Crown prosecutor Dejana Kovac and Rajek’s defence counsel Nicholas Brown, that he would not sentence Rajek “without some sort of psychiatric material”.

“This offending completely unexplained, it is a complete vacuum, and there is no simple analysis of his situation,” Justice Callaghan said.

“We’ll see if we can get an explanation, otherwise I don’t know what I can conclude other than (Rajek) is a menace to the community and will remain so for life on the strength of what I see here,” Justice Callaghan said.

He told the parties that a report prepared and filed in court had not connected Rajek’s mental health condition with the attempted murder.

“If there was an explanation and it related to something which could be treated, or at least to an, even to a factual scenario that was unlikely to be repeated, then concerns about community protection are perhaps not as great,” Justice Callaghan said.

Crown prosecutor Dejana Kovac said Rajek had told police he was drunk when he stabbed the man.

Justice Callaghan said that without mitigating circumstances Rajek could face more than 18 years’ in jail, referring to the 18-year jail term given to Sifa Tevita in 2004 who was 17 years old when he tried to kill a wheelchair-bound man at his Alderley unit in exchange for money.

Justice Callaghan adjourned the sentencing hearing until February 16 and ordered that Corrective Services prepare a presentence psychiatric report containing an assessment of Rajek’s mental health, both current and historic.
The report must address which mental health condition “may have been linked to the offending", if at all.

“If any such condition is diagnosed I would ask the report to contain recommendations that might be made for treatment of such condition, and in particular any treatment that might be relevant for the safety of the community after the release of the defendant,” Justice Callaghan said.