Feral Melbourne mum Katrina ‘Kat’ Casey pleads guilty to false imprisonment and theft

A Melbourne mum juiced off her head on GHB who helped keep a woman prisoner in a car is sorry for what she did to her victim.

Katrina Casey pleaded guilty to false imprisonment. Facebook.

A drug-addicted mum juiced on GHB helped carry out a false imprisonment escapade where the victim was bundled in a car and driven to a house in Melbourne’s outer east.

Katrina ‘Kat’ Casey, 32, fronted the County Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to false imprisonment and theft.

Casey and her former roommate Kirsti Kelk assailed their victim late on March 11, 2021.

The then 27-year-old female victim had been at her ex-partner’s Malvern home with her kid when she received a phone call from a friend asking her for help.

The friend said he was at the end of the street, so the victim kissed her kid goodnight and went out to help him.

Little did the victim know she was walking into a trap.

The victim walked to a car and noticed a third co-accused who was allegedly in the driver seat before seeing her friend who appeared to be heavily drug affected.

The victim asked her friend if he was OK but got no response, the court was told.

She then entered the car and was driven a short distance where Kelk was waiting for her.

The court was told the victim attempted to open her door when she saw Kelk but couldn’t due to the child lock system being activated.

Kelk then opened the door and snarled at the victim.

“What do you think was going to happen the next time I saw you,” Kelk said.

The savage Kelk then kicked the victim in the head and punched her face twice.

Kelk then entered the car along with Casey who sat in the back seat next to the victim.

It’s alleged the third co-accused drove the vehicle from the scene.

CCTV footage obtained from surrounding properties captured the physical altercation and saw the car drive off about 9.43pm, the court heard.

Kelk screamed and continued assaulting the victim, demanding to know where her phone, wallet and handbag were.

Kelk then handed the victim’s handbag to Casey who rifled through the bag.

The third co-accused allegedly asked the victim where all her money was, claiming the victim’s friend said she’d been paid that day.

The car was stopped at a Burwood Hwy petrol station where the victim screamed for help and attempted to flee.

Kelk assaulted the victim again while the third co-accused allegedly drove to a Ferntree Gully house.

The victim was pushed into the house while Casey remained in the car.

Casey feels sorry for her victim.

The victim eventually left the property with another male and reported the kidnapping to police.

The victim received multiple injuries including facial bruising, abrasions and non displaced nasal bone fracture.

Her mobile phone and wallet were stolen.

The wallet contained personal cards, a picture of her son and a personal note written by her father just before he passed away.

Casey was arrested after she handed herself into police almost a month later on April 6.

Casey, who made a “no comment” interview”, spent 58 days on remand before she was granted bail.

The prosecution submitted Kelk played a “more serious” role in the offending but Casey made no moves to help the victim and didn’t call police after.

The court heard Casey, a mother of two, was “heavily” drug-affected at the time after taking “significant” amounts of GHB.

The defence submitted Casey’s level of intoxication “hampered her ability to intervene” and only stayed with the group because “she didn’t have any other form of transport”.

“She was limited in terms of her ability to think or act independently or to take a stand,” the defence submitted.

“She’s expressed that she feels very sorry for the victim after what she observed.”

The court heard Casey’s long-term drug addiction has caused her to be homeless and she has been living in her car or “couch surfing” since released on bail.

Casey also “desperately wants to break the cycle” of her addiction and repair her relationship with her two kids and mother, the court was told.

Judge Stewart Bayles said Casey was in need of “therapeutic intervention” and ordered her to be assessed by corrections.

Casey will be sentenced at a later date.

Kelk was sentenced on February 6 this year to a maximum 30-month jail term with a 20-month minimum after pleading guilty to false imprisonment and robbery.

The third co-accused is contesting charges.

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