Tiani Lea Searancke jailed for 18 months after horrifying Frankston break-in left family devastated
A SIX-year-old girl is still so traumatised a year after a drug-crazed woman broke into her Frankston house and terrorised her mother, she wakes up screaming in the middle of the night.
South East
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A YOUNG girl is still so terrified after an aggravated burglary she wakes up screaming in the middle of the night.
And she is so traumatised by the nightmare events of a year ago that the six-year-old sometimes wets herself with fear.
On June 19, Frankston Magistrates’ Court heard an emotional victim impact statement from the mother of the young girl.
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Her statement was tendered during the sentencing of 29-year-old Tiani Lea Searancke, herself a mother, who will serve a minimum of 12 months behind bars for the horrifying attack.
The court heard substance-affected Searancke broke into the woman’s Frankston house at around 10pm on April 26 last year.
The victim heard a noise, and when she went to investigate, was confronted by Searancke ranting and raving about staying in her “mate Crystal’s house”.
When the victim politely told her to leave, Searancke launched a horrifying attack on her.
The young girl heard the fight, and saw her mum being scratched, bit, hit with a vacuum pipe and threatened with a spray can.
Searancke then ran off, trying but failing to steal the woman’s mobile phone on the way out.
Police found her hiding nearby and arrested her.
In court the prosecution read out the victim impact statement from the mother, who said it was so horrifying they had moved house.
The mother said she suffered headaches, found it hard to trust people and no longer felt safe in her own home.
She described her daughter as having changed from a fun, well-balanced girl to one wracked with fear who had regressed to wearing nappies at night.
“She wakes late at night, screams uncontrollably,” the statement said.
“My daughter makes pictures showing herself being killed.”
A second statement from the young girl’s grandmother said on many occasions she has woken up screaming and wetting herself.
Searancke’s defence lawyer said the mother of four, who was pregnant with a fifth child, had mental health and substance abuse issues and was remorseful.
Magistrate Steven Raleigh disputed the remorse, saying he watched Searancke as the victim statement was read out and she showed no emotion whatsoever.
He said it was a horrendous ordeal for a child to have been so traumatised by such a terrifying crime.
Searancke was sentenced to 18 months in jail, with a non-parole period of 12 months. She has already served 95 days in custody.
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