Murwillumbah local Charlie Larter allegedly stabbed to death in front of his family on his birthday
CHARLIE Larter had planned to celebrate his birthday yesterday with a quiet drink at the pub with his wife and son. He never made it. A man has been charged with his murder.
Crime and Court
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A 22-year-old man has been charged murder after a frenzied stabbing in a Murwillumbah park yesterday.
Tweed Byron local area command crime manager Detective Inspector Brendon Cullen this morning confirmed James Alderton was charged over the fatal stabbing of 46-year-old Charlie Larter.
Heavily tattooed on his face and visibly anxious, Alderton, appeared in Tweed Heads Local Court this morning wearing a blue forensic suit and made no application for bail.
He was remanded in custody and will appear in the Lismore Local Court on June 27.
“We believe he did know one of the victims,” Detective Inspector Cullen said.
The bloody attack occurred on Mr Larter’s birthday.
Detective Inspector Cullen this morning urged any witnesses of the Knox Park brawl to come forward.
“There was a significant amount of people in the park at the time of the incident and we are appealing for those people who have taken footage on their mobile phones to come forward and contact us,” he said.
“(We are asking) people who have witnessed this incident (to come forward) so we can get a clearer picture of exactly what happened.”
Police said they are still unclear about exactly what sparked the incident.
Detective Inspector Cullen assured the residents of Murwillumbah they should have no concerns for safety in the small northern NSW town.
“A man has been arrested and it’s about healing now and moving on with things,” he said.
“It would have a very big impact on that town. They should be calm about what’s happened.
“There is no concern for crime in Murwillumbah and I’m assuring them (the residents) they have a police presence.”
Detective Inspector Cullen dismissed allegations Murwillumbah police station was under resourced saying while crews were tied up with a serious mental health patient at the time the call came through to the station, they were on scene within three minutes of receiving the call.
The 22-year-old man was arrested soon after police arrived on the scene.
Mr Lartner had planned to celebrate his birthday yesterday with a quiet drink at the pub with his wife and son.
He never made it.
The 46-year-old was stabbed trying to save his son during a bloody attack near Knox Park in Murwillumbah.
During yesterday’s incident, paramedics performed CPR on the scene and rushed Mr Larter to hospital, but the well-known local suffered a heart attack and died a short time later in the Tweed Hospital.
A shirtless man with face tattoos and a large kitchen knife allegedly attacked Mr Larter, his teenage son, Zack, and a male friend at about 12.40pm on Prince St. It is believed the attack followed a wild brawl in the park minutes earlier.
Zack, 18, was allegedly stabbed once in the chest before his father jumped in to protect him, while the 29-year-old male family friend suffered cuts in the attack.
Mr Larter’s sister, Cathy Larter, said she was in shock after speaking to her brother just hours before he was killed.
Speaking from her Gold Coast home Ms Larter said she wished her brother a “happy birthday” and told him she loved him.
“He was planning to go have some drinks and go to the pub with his family ... next thing I hear he has been killed and my nephew is in surgery,” she said.
Ms Larter said she did not know Zack’s condition last night, but the family were hopeful he would make a full recovery.
A teenage witness, known only as Rob, said he watched the life drain from the well-known local.
“His wife was screaming, and both he and his son were bleeding, it was awful,” he said.
“The older man tried to help his son and fell.
“I got video of it happening ... but detectives made me delete it after giving it to them ... I saw a man dying in front of me.”
Another witness, who wouldn’t be named, said a fight broke out in the park about 12.15pm, allegedly between a tattooed man and a group of youths.
“The bloke left for a while and came back with a big knife, that’s when it really started to get intense,” he said.
“Lots of other people were getting involved.
“Some were armed with glass bottles and poles ... it all happened right at lunch time in front of kids and old people.”
The streets around Knox Park were cordoned off for several hours yesterday afternoon as forensic officers combed the area for clues and looked in drains for evidence.
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