Jay Cooper: 20-year-old Wauchope man guilty of assault, intimidation, damage property

A Mid-North Coast man’s “reckless” actions – assaulting multiple people, injuring a police officer, and causing damage to venue as well as a stranger’s car – have landed him before a court.

A Wauchope man’s actions – which caused harm to multiple people, a police officer, and property – has been labelled “reckless” by a magistrate.

Jay Cooper, 20, pleaded guilty in Port Macquarie Local Court on October 5 to two common assault (domestic violence) charges, assault officer in execution of duty (domestic violence), resist officer in execution of duty (domestic violence), stalk/intimidate intend fear physical/mental harm (domestic), common assault, destroy/damage property, stalk/intimidate intend fear physical/mental harm (personal), destroy or damage property less than $2000, and excluded person re-enter/attempt to re-enter premise.

Jay Cooper, 20.

It comes after a string of violent offences over the past two years, dating back to late 2020.

The first offence occurred on October 10, 2020, when Cooper visited his cousin’s house for drinks on Ackroyd St, Port Macquarie.

Court documents recount the pair being “well-effected by intoxicating liquor” by 2am, when a verbal argument broke out.

Neighbours heard the argument and called authorities.

Meanwhile Cooper and his cousin began to wrestle on the villa’s balcony, while a friend of the victim tried to help intervene.

When police arrived, Cooper was holding his cousin by the hair.

“All parties were screaming and shouting,” agreed police facts stated.

“Police approached (Cooper) and physically removed his hands from the victim’s hair.

“(He) became angry and started shouting and pushing past police.”

Cooper was sentence in Port Macquarie Local Court.

Police attempted to physically restrain him, with Cooper using his body weight to resist and throw the officers off.

It took four police officers to restrain the 20-year-old, with one being thrown to the concrete ground in the scuffle, suffering forearm and knee injuries.

More than six months later Cooper offended again, this time targeting a different victim, his on-again off-again girlfriend of two years.

Around 3.15pm on April 22, 2021, Cooper and the victim visited the Wauchope Library on High St where they “immediately engaged in a verbal argument” over the woman not returning Cooper’s phone.

“The verbal argument was heated with the victim moving further into the library between shelving,” court documents reveal.

Cooper followed her into the library, yelling at her.

“The victim had her back against the wall, (Cooper) using an open left hand lightly slapped the victim to the right side of her face,” police facts claim.

“The accused has, on a number of occasions, moved towards her and, as such, she moved her arms and legs up in a defensive action.”

Cooper took a phone from the front right pocket of the victim’s pants before fleeing the scene on a bicycle.

Police were called to the library where the victim told them Cooper did not assault her.

“She refused to tell police what had occurred,” court documents state.

Police viewed the CCTV “which clearly shows the above occurring” and spoke with witnesses who supported this.

Cooper was arrested at his Wauchope home later that day, telling police he “was only retrieving his property”.

The man was granted conditional bail over the assault, with of the conditions stipulating that he must not approach or contact the victim, and an apprehended domestic violence order (ADVO) was also established between Cooper and the woman.

Just one week later, on April 27, 2021, police observed a grey Mazda 3 sedan travelling west along High St, Wauchope, which they pulled over for a random breath test.

Police recognised Cooper and became subsequently aware that the front seat passenger was the same victim he’d assaulted at the library.

“Therefore (Cooper was) breaching not only his bail conditions, but condition number two of the enforceable ADVO,” police facts explain.

Cooper told police the pair had met up “for a feed and to hang out”, and he was driving her home when they pulled him over.

The unlawful behaviour continued into 2022, with Cooper committing a number of offences at a New Year’s party in Beechwood.

Just after midnight on January 1, 2022, the party concluded and Cooper was part of a group congregating outside the address.

“Most persons attending this party were significantly impaired by the consumption of alcohol,” police facts state.

A video filmed on a mobile phone shows Cooper throwing a punch, missing his target and striking a woman in the back of the head.

Around the same time, Cooper has gone on to punch and kick a Nissan Tiida of a fellow partygoer, causing $2484.90 worth of damages.

Less than two months into the new year, Cooper attended a 21st birthday party at the Wauchope Country Club where he and three others “forced the doors to the top bar open” and went inside, despite the bar being closed.

When a staff member told them to leave, Cooper walked away swearing before punching the wall which caused a small fist-sized hole.

Jay Cooper, 20.

As the barman was kicking him out, Cooper said “come out ya dogs see what happens”.

The staff member told Cooper he wouldn’t be let back in, to which he said “you pushed me upstairs that’s why I did it. I’m not going anywhere” before approaching the victim “in an aggressive manner”.

“Several other people intervened (and) the accused’s father escorted him away from the premises,” court documents recount.

About 20 minutes later, Cooper returned to the venue in different clothes.

The same staff member told him “you’re not allowed to be here, if you approach I’ll consider that a threat to my staff”.

The victim called police and Cooper fled the location.

The following month, Cooper was slapped with his eighth charge since August 2020.

About 11.15am on March 23, 2022, police found Cooper at his residential address on Wallace St, Wauchope.

Police approached Cooper and arrested him.

He told the officers “I was wondering why police have been coming to my sister’s house a lot looking for me. If I had known I was being arrested I would have run”.

“The accused became argumentative and disrespectful to police while in custody,” according to court documents.

Cooper’s lawyer told the court his client is employed but has limited capacity to pay a fine.

Magistrate Georgina Darcy warned Cooper to stay away from alcohol, given the number of offences that occurred while he was under the influence.

The magistrate noted he’d “started to accumulate quite a record” and it was “tragic” to see Cooper “stepping up the level of sentencing” at such a young age, especially given his “potential” when abstaining from alcohol.

The magistrate told Cooper his actions were “reckless”, injuring multiple people and damaging the motor vehicle of a person he didn’t even know.

Ms Darcy handed down a number of fines – five amounts of $200 and $2484.90 in compensation – as well as convictions and a 12-month supervised community correction order (CCO).

Cooper must abstain from alcohol for the duration of his CCO, and complete 80 hours of community service.