Robert Allenby attack: A homeless woman gives conflicting account of what led to golfer’s bashing

A HOMELESS woman has given a conflicting account of Robert Allenby’s bashing, as more details emerge of how he was lured to his attackers and their identities.

A HOMELESS woman has given a conflicting account of what led to the violent bashing of Australian golfer Robert Allenby in Hawaii.

And it has emerged that police have CCTV footage of a suspect wanted over the attack.
A homeless woman told Nine News that she found Allenby, 43, “bloodied and confused” and arguing with two men about a block away from the bar where he had been out last Friday night.

She alleged Allenby asked her to use his credit card to withdraw $500 cash to pay his attackers so he could get his wallet back, Nine News reports.

ALLENBY RECALLS: Abduction and attack was like a scene from movie Taken

Fresh account ... the homeless woman has spoken to Honolulu police.

The witness, who has spoken to police, told Nine News the men were “quite aggressive” before a man, described as a former soldier, intervened and helped Allenby into a cab back to his hotel.

Nine also reports the Honolulu Police Department has CCTV footage of a suspect using Allenby’s credit card to buy two bottles of alcohol at Waikiki.

Speaking to Nine, a bloodied Allenby said the attack was like the plot of a Hollywood movie.
“We’ve all seen these movies, Taken. it’s the spitting image of that, really,” Allenby said.

Targeted ... Robert Allenby believes it was not a random attack.

He said he was “still trying to pinpoint whether it was a baseball bat or someone’s fist” that hit him.

Allenby said he believed it was a targeted attack.

“It’s a shame that people get jealous,” Allenby said.

“The only good thing is is that I survived.”

The Australian pro-golfer was at AMUSE Wine Bar in Honolulu, when he left his friend to go to the bathroom.

Scene of the crime ... the wine bar inside the Honolulu Design Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. Picture: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

When he returned, a group of people he did not know told him that his friend was waiting for him downstairs in the carpark.

Nine said Allenby then caught the lift down and when he emerged, he claimed he was brutally bashed before being robbed and stuffed in a car boot.

Brutally bashed ... where Robert Allenby was allegedly stuffed into a car boot.

Allenby had previously described being saved by a homeless woman after the attack.

While his recollection of the incident is patchy, Allenby recalled a woman coming to his aid after he was dumped from the car, roughly 10 kilometres from where he was abducted.

His recollection of events contradicts what the homeless woman has told Nine News and Hawaiian police.

Allenby claimed the homeless woman scared off two other men who were kicking him.

“A homeless lady pretty much saved my life,” Allenby had earlier said.

Allenby appeared on Sunrise today via Skype to speak about the attack, which occurred after he had dinner at the up-market wine bar in Honolulu.

Allenby and the friend he was dining with were separated about 10.50pm when the attack occurred.

CCTV apparently shows him surrounded by up to five men, according to reports.

Allenby was allegedly knocked unconscious, placed in the boot and then dumped about 10km away after being robbed.

The bizarre ordeal has prompted sympathy but also scepticism from members of the public, with some questioning whether it was a “publicity stunt”.

The bar ... AMUSE wine bar in Honolulu O'Ahu Hawaii.

“I walked around the corner (of the restaurant) and then, bang,” Allenby told Sunrise.

“I’m not really sure what hit me. I’m not sure if it was a fist or a bat. Obviously I’m in a lot of pain.

“Next minute, I was thrown out of the boot of a car ... and on to the side (of the) street.

“You see a lot of things on movies — I’ve watched Taken quite a few times. It kind of felt pretty much the same as that. Very surreal.”

Allenby suffered cuts and bruises to his face. It’s unlikely he will play in the Sony Open tournament this week — the reason he was in Hawaii.

Originally published as Robert Allenby attack: A homeless woman gives conflicting account of what led to golfer’s bashing