Pyrmont stabbing victim’s family speak out after attack
A relative of a man allegedly stabbed in the eye and left fighting for life by a group of teens who gloated about their attack said he was struggling to “fathom how humanity is capable of that”.
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A relative of a man allegedly stabbed in the eye and left fighting for life by a group of teens who gloated about their attack said he was struggling to “fathom how humanity is capable of that”.
Police have arrested nine teenagers over what they claim was a “planned and targeted attack” in Pyrmont on Friday night against innocent 36-year-old dad Brett Halcro who was visiting Sydney from Melbourne.
Mr Halcro, who was left in an induced coma, had been sliced across the face at least seven times, had his head stomped on and was expected to lose sight in one eye.
“I had spoken to him the night before, he was fine,” the relative, who asked not to be named, said.
“He left a voicemail earlier that night (of the attack) just indicating he wanted to catch up and he was fine.
“He’s such a meek and mild individual … completely shy.”
He said the texts the young men sent allegedly boasting about their own brutality were difficult to comprehend.
“It’s incredibly difficult to fathom how humanity is capable of that in the first place,” he said.
“Our family is just trying to focus on the recovery.”
Court documents revealed one boy allegedly texted a friend saying: “I put the shattered bottle in his stomach and then (another boy) slit his face like 15 times and stabbed him in the eye.
“He stuck it in his eye. Put it in deeper. And swivelled the knife around. So funny.”
One of the boys charged with affray and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm was released on bail on Monday and emerged from his home wearing a Carlingford High School uniform on Wednesday.
The boy answered “No, no” when approached by The Daily Telegraph before being silenced by his father.
Two other boys fronted Sydney children’s courts on Wednesday, where prosecutors claimed one, a 15-year-old, was part of a social media group chat which showed “pro-criminal mentality”.
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“They were gloating about the injuries. They were almost proud of the infliction of the violence,” Sergeant Kai Jiang told Surry Hills Children’s Court.
Sgt Jiang said the incident was captured on CCTV and mobile phone footage, while several witnesses had also given their accounts to police.
Magistrate Jeffrey Hogg denied the 15-year-old bail, saying the group had also discussed taking revenge on anyone who went to the police.
“It is a vile, horrific crime,” he said. “The injuries are extraordinarily severe and life-changing.”
Another boy, aged 16, was granted bail in Parramatta Children’s Court on Wednesday, on charges of affray and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
His conditions of release included that he reside with his parents, not leave home without them unless he is travelling to TAFE and be home between 7pm and 6am.
The NSW Education Department would not confirm whether any of the boys had been expelled from public schools as a result of the incident, saying “as this matter is before the courts we cannot comment”.
One of the alleged co-accused went to the prestigious Barker College at Hornsby, which did confirmed “the school is aware that one of its students is facing a serious charge … the student no longer attends the school”.
Relatives for Brett Halcro have set up a gofundme page to help with his rehabilitation.