Young Nowra man Keeda Meehan jailed after Archer Hotel stabbing

A young man has been sentenced to jail after his involvement in a violent pub brawl on the NSW south coast, which ended with a man having a 12cm blade removed from his back.

Keeda Meehan was sentenced in the Nowra District Court.

A young man involved in a wild pub brawl on the NSW south coast, which ended with a 12cm knife lodged in a man’s shoulder blade, will spend the next few years behind bars.

Keeda Meehan, 22, faced the Nowra District Court on Wednesday for sentencing following the shocking pub brawl at the Nowra Archer Hotel on the evening of December 1, 2022.

Meehan was convicted and sentenced to three years and eight months in prison with a non parole period of two years and four months.

The court heard that Meehan was among a group of men when he saw his ex-girlfriend’s new partner at the pub.

While the court previously heard Meehan began arguing with the man before eventually stabbing him in the back, the Crown prosecutor said that they could not prove beyond reasonable doubt that Meehan was the one to stab him.

Instead, she said it could have been any one of the men in Meehan’s group, but did note that witnesses saw Meehan holding the knife.

The stabbing occurred at the Archer Hotel in Nowra.

Documents tendered to the court reveal the brawl started after stern words were shared between the victim and Meehan’s group, before the victim was stabbed in his back with the knife becoming stuck in his shoulder blade.

Meehan and his group fled the scene, before police were called by the pub manager.

Meanwhile, a pub patron drove the victim to the Shoalhaven District Hospital where his stab wound was assessed and the knife removed.

Agreed facts state the man needed 12 internal and external stitches.

On December 31, 2022, Meehan was arrested, refused bail and charged with reckless wounding in company and affray.

Meehan – who has remained in custody since – previously pleaded guilty to these charges.

The court heard there was another man in the group also charged in relation to the incident, with Sebastian Williams-Locke charged with reckless wounding in company and affray.

Keeda Meehan was sentenced in the Nowra District Court.

He recently pleaded not guilty and will face the Downing Centre Court on February 14 for a hearing.

In court, a letter written by Meehan was provided to Judge Christopher O’Brien which indicated his regret for the incident, saying wished he walked away.

Defence barrister Jack Hibbard submitted his client had a “rough” upbringing, with a psychological report revealing he had mental issues which impacted his decision making.

However, Judge O’Brien noted a sentencing assessment report showed a lack of remorse from Meehan.

The Crown prosecutor also labelled the case “serious”, noting full time custody was the only appropriate punishment.

“This is a matter where violence was used as opposed to just being a threat,” she said.

Judge O’Brien said, when handing down his sentence, that the general community needed to be deterred from dealing with issues by way of serious physical violence.

“There is no alternative punishment to full time in this case,” he said.

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