Mum upset over baby formula bulk buyers selling it overseas lashes out and smashes phone
Angry that “hordes of Asians” were milking a Keysborough supermarket dry of baby formula, a mum took her anger out on one person she accused of buying up the product. Now she’s faced court for her crime.
South East
Don't miss out on the headlines from South East . Followed categories will be added to My News.
A fight over baby formula has landed a single mum in court after she smashed a phone belonging to one of what she called “hordes of Asians” buying the in-demand powder.
Samantha Smith pleaded guilty to one charge of wilfully damaging property at Dandenong Magistrates’ Court yesterday.
The court heard Smith was in the carpark of the Coles Parkmore supermarket in Keysborough on the morning of December 18 last year.
OUTRAGE OVER BABY FORMULA BLITZ
'CHATTY' ALDI CUSTOMER BASHED WITH MILK CARTON
DAD LEAVES BABY IN CAR TO GO TO SHOPS
BABY FORMULA SHORTAGE COULD BE SOLVED
As she walked back to her car she started a row with another woman over the bulk-buying of baby formula.
The other woman started filming Smith and she became irate, grabbing the woman’s arm and smashing her $200 mobile phone on the ground.
The victim was upset and police were called, although by the time they arrived Smith had gone.
Officers tracked her down through CCTV and ten days later paid her a visit at her Keysborough home, but she wasn’t there so they left a card.
She handed herself in to police the next day, saying said she was the one being assaulted and the phone had fallen when she retaliated.
Organised groups are making a quick buck buying the powder and sending it in large amounts to China, where there has been a black market for safe baby formula since a 2008 melamine contamination scare killed six babies and made 300,000 ill.
Smith represented herself in court saying “it was wrong” that people could get away with sending large quantities of baby formula overseas.
“It annoys me, there are hordes of Asians always down there, speaking to me in Chinese, being rude,” Smith said.
“They are always down at my Coles in big numbers. I’ve complained to Coles plenty of times, but they don’t do anything.”
Magistrate Sharon McRae said Smith simply couldn’t behave that way.
“You can’t take things into your own hands, it is not something you can do,” Ms McRae said.
Smith, who has a prior assault matter from 2009, was placed on a good behaviour bond and ordered to pay $100 to the court fund. No conviction was recorded.