Zye Smith: South Grafton man denied bail after assault outside Hip Pocket Workwear store

A young Clarence Valley man who was previously labelled an “unmitigated thug” in court has made a bid for bail as he faced another violent assault charge. Find out what happened.

Zye Smith, 18, appeared via videolink at Grafton Local Court where he made a bid for bail after entering a guilty plea to assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

A young Clarence Valley man who was previously labelled an “unmitigated thug” after he bashed a pedestrian has landed himself back behind bars following another violent assault.

Zye Smith, 18, appeared via videolink at Grafton Local Court where he made a bid for bail after entering a guilty plea to assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

This latest charges comes after the 18-year-old bashed a pedestrian and kicked him in the head once he fell to the ground on Ryan St, Grafton, last November.

Days after the bashing he also broke into a Grafton home and stole four small children’s motorbikes, which the owners spotted him riding on Armidale Rd.

When he was first sentenced for these offences, Magistrate Roger Prowse told the court Smith was “an unmitigated thug” and sentenced him to two years in prison.

Zye Smith (pictured) spent time in jail before appealing his sentence after an assault and bike thefts.

However, the severity of the prison sentence was overturned on appeal and reduced to a 12-month community corrections order.

But the young South Grafton man has found himself once again behind bars for a violent assault he committed on October 10 in the company of a 19-year-old co-offender.

Smith made a bid for bail at Grafton Local Court. Picture: Adam Hourigan.

According to documents tendered to court, Smith and the co-offender were at a carpark outside the Hip Pocket Workwear store on Through St, South Grafton, at around 10pm when they spotted the victim, a 23-year-old man, who was with three of his friends.

“(Smith) shook hands with (the victim) and his friends, before the co-offender asked them for a cigarette — they said they did not have a cigarette,” police facts state.

The court heard the co-offender then asked the victim if he could ride his motorcycle and the victim said no.

“(This prompted) the co-offender to say, ‘Well I’m just going to take your bike then’ to which (the victim) replied, ‘You’re not taking my f**king bike’,” police facts state.

After this, the court heard Smith blocked the victim’s path to the motorcycle and said, “Don’t talk to my f**king brother like that, you want a go?”.

“(Smith) then punched (the victim’s) face, causing (him) to fall and hit his head on a metal pole … (he) was briefly dizzy and his vision temporarily became blurred,” court documents state.

In court, Smith’s defence lawyer made a bid for his client to be released on bail, stating the victim did not sustain any long-lasting injury and, after the punch, the 18-year-old had attempted to diffuse the situation from turning more violent.

The court also heard Smith had a disadvantaged background and “had been let down by the adults in his life”, having being exposed to drugs and alcohol abuse throughout his early years.

But Magistrate Juliana Crofts denied Smith’s bid for bail citing the importance of community safety and his criminal history.

Smith will next return to court on May 26.