Lake Munmorah road rage: victim Bianca Sams ‘provocative’
‘GRONK’ Clint Pollard copped a three-year good behaviour bond and $900 fine. Now exclusive video shows what his so-called ‘victim’ did to provoke him.
Central Coast
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THE so-called victim of a road rage attack, which went viral after it was posted on social media, has pleaded guilty to provoking the assault by throwing nails at the offender’s car and goading him to “come on”.
Bianca Lee Sams, of Terence Ave, Lake Munmorah, went on A Current Affair after she was punched in the face by another motorist at a Lake Munmorah intersection last year describing her attacker as a “low life scum bag”.
“He’s a bitch in my eyes, if he can hit a female. I feel sorry for his kids if he has any, I feel sorry for his wife if he has one,” Sams told Channel 9.
But it was the unemployed single mother who was revealed to be equally culpable after changing her earlier not guilty plea and admitting to instigating the confrontation by throwing nails and later a large metal chisel at Clint Pollard’s brand new Mazda BT50 scratching multiple panels and smashing his driver’s side rear mirror.
Footage obtained exclusively by the Express Advocate — which can be aired for the first time after her guilty pleas — shows Sams hanging out of the passenger seat of her friend’s ute in what police facts described as a “Dukes of Hazard’ style, throwing nails at Pollard’s vehicle while laughing and goading him to “come on”.
Dressed in a white T-shirt and jeans the 22-year-old said nothing at Wyong Local Court this morning when her solicitor entered guilty pleas to intentionally throwing objects at a vehicle risking the occupant’s safety, having part of her body outside the window and two counts of damaging property.
Three further charges of failing to wear a seatbelt, being armed with intent to commit an indictable offence and destroying property were withdrawn by the consent of the police prosecutor.
Magistrate Mick Morahan ordered Sams to undergo a full pre-sentence report before adjourning the matter for sentence on April 24.
Her solicitor, who described the case as “bizarre”, told the court she would pay $1358.20 compensation to the victim, Clint Matthew Pollard, via the court.
Pollard, 42, Windermere, was last month convicted of assault and put on a three-year good behaviour bond. He was also fined $900.
During his appearance his barrister tendered photographs, a doctor’s report, a receipt for the damage to his side mirror and a copy of an Instagram post which described Pollard as a woman hitter who deserved to go to jail and get “what he deserved”.
He said Pollard had been inundated with similar threatening social media posts and had to close his Facebook and Twitter profiles.
He said Pollard was under “duress” by Sams throwing nails at his car and she had armed herself.
“He made a decision because he couldn’t physically run. It was a poor decision,” his barrister told the court.
“He knew this new $30,000 car he had spent the last of his money on was getting damaged. We accept the decision making process was flawed.”
The court heard Pollard was on a disability pension after a motorcycle accident three years ago and was on his way to Catherine Hill Bay for a walk as part of his ongoing rehabilitation on July 24 last year.
HOW IT UNFOLDED
He was travelling along Rutelys Rd at Wyee where the speed limit drops from 80km/h to 60km/h with Sams travelling behind in a Ford Ranger being driven by her friend Taylor Lea Benbridge.
When he slowed to obey the speed limit Sams and Benbridge came up close to the back of his ute and blasted their horn.
A little bit further along Benbridge overtook Pollard and slammed on her brakes.
“The vehicles have continued to travel in this direction with Benbridge’s vehicle driving slowly to impede the victim’s driving,” the police facts read.
As the vehicles approached the BP service station on the Pacific Highway Sams is clearly captured in footage taken on Pollard’s phone to hang out of the window and throw objects, which were later identified as strips of galvanised nails used in nail guns.
When they reached the red light at the intersection of Carters Rd, directly outside Lake Munmorah Public School, Sams got out and was seen by a witness to mouth to the victim “come and get me” in a taunting manner.
“It can be seen in the video recording the accused has objects in her hands believed to be more nail gun strips,” police facts read.
“At one point the accused raises her arm above her head in a threatening manner as if she was going to throw the nail gun strips directly toward the victim while he was still in his vehicle.”
Pollard got out and walked up to Sams before punching her in the face.
He later told police he was fearful and did not know what else to do other than “I clocked her in the chops”.
In Pollard’s sentencing on February 6 Magistrate Peter Barnett said clearly Sams was acting aggressively and in a “criminal manner” but Pollard should never have got out of his car.
“Once he got out of his car only one thing was going to happen … it was going to escalate,” Mr Barnett said.
“When he did go to `sort it’ he did so with violence.”
The magistrate said the incident “was a mountain that came out of a mole hill”.
“I accept that the passenger I the motor vehicle and the person he quote-unquote `clocked’ was provocative,” he said.
“Violence in our society is too prevalent and it cannot be tolerated.”
Benbridge, who had her five-month-old baby in her Ford utility at the time, pleaded guilty to driving recklessly in a dangerous manner after she tried to reverse into Pollard after the assault and later bragged about it on social media.
“Yeah he ran and once I seen him behind the car I tried running him over for hitting you … bloody gronk,” she wrote on Facebook at the time.
She also pleaded guilty to failing to comply with the conditions of her licence and travelling with an unrestrained passenger.
She was given a five-month suspended jail sentenced.