Evan Davis: Gold Coast man receives compensation after 2007 attack on bus

This Gold Coast man was brutally attacked on a bus, leaving him with a broken nose and his mobile phone stolen. Now, after an astonishing period of time, he’s finally got justice.

A FORMER Gold Coast man whose phone was stolen and nose broken in a violent attack 13 years ago has finally received a compensation payout.

Evan Davis was this week surprised to receive $630 through SPER over the loss of the phone, which occurred in September 2007 while riding on a bus.

Mr Davis was coming home from work at Jupiters Casino when a 22-year-old man attacked him from behind, hitting him at least five times while he was on the ground, breaking his nose and stealing his phone.

A court was told the young man had consumed around 20 bourbons.

Mr Davis’ attacker, described by then-Judge Clive Wall as a “thug”, pleaded guilty and was jailed in September 2008 for two years, suspended after six months.

Mr Davis tagged the Bulletin original story on Twitter this week, saying the ordeal was finally over.

Speaking from his home in Birmingham this week, Mr Davis, now 50, said: “It was an unexpected surprise after all this time, especially given it was over an old Nokia phone that nobody would even touch anymore,” he said.

“I thought it would never happen and the guy would never pay up and after a few years I had no real interest in chasing it up.”

Mr Davis, who works in administration, said he held memories of the attack.

“I was working at Jupiters at the time and had finished my shift. It was around 2am. I remember getting bashed and going to the old Gold Coast Hospital in Southport afterwards.

“I didn’t go to court but I did pay for the transcript and I re-read it last night which brought back memories.”

In his September 2008 sentence Judge Wall said a deterrent jail sentence was required.

‘This was persistent thuggery to someone who did you no wrong,’’ he told the attacker, who would be 35 years old today.

‘‘People who travel on public transport are entitled to be protected from thugs like you.”

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