Luke Picking: man bashes girlfriend in Wildwood before chasing witness
When a woman noticed a teenager being bashed by her much older boyfriend in a car on a road near Sunbury, she stopped to help. The girl ran into her vehicle and they sped off, but the vile thug wasn’t about to give in.
West
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A vile thug who chased a woman and swerved into her car after she stopped him from bashing his girlfriend could soon be freed.
Luke Picking, 37, faced Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court via video link on September 28 where he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, two court order breaches, committing an indictable offence while on bail and intentionally cause injury.
Senior Constable Andrew Sprakel told the court Picking and his 18-year-old girlfriend were sitting in his parked car on Wildwood Rd, Wildwood, on January 5 when a motorist spotted him punching his girlfriend and pulled over.
The motorist got out to see if she could help, and the terrified young woman fled from Picking’s car into the woman’s vehicle.
Another motorist stopped to see if he could also help, and followed close behind the other woman’s car as they drove off so Picking could not tailgate them, the court heard.
But Sen-Constable Sprakel told the court Picking slammed his car into gear and sped up to overtake the man’s car, and drove up beside the car carrying his girlfriend and tried to swerve into its path.
He later sent his girlfriend a flurry of texts at first begging her not to dob him in to police before berating her and calling her a “sl — t” and a “lying piece of sh — t”.
“This is going to come back on you, watch,” one text chillingly read.
The frightened woman was taken to hospital for treatment and had cuts and bruises to her face, arms, legs and feet.
Her hair extensions had also been ripped so forcefully they’d become loose from their fixings, the court heard.
Picking’s lawyer, Anh Liang, told the court her client had been on remand since his arrest on January 14 and had spent 258 days in presentence detention.
She asked Magistrate Olivia Trumble to release Picking so he could care for his elderly mother who had cancer.
Ms Trumble told the court Picking’s offending would have been terrifying for everyone involved.
“The incident is serious, no doubt is it serious. It involves members of the public who were no doubt in concern of her welfare and in concern of their own welfare.”
She indicated she would impose a small amount of extra jail time in addition to the time served as well as an 18-month community corrections order.
The indication was accepted and the matter is due back at court at a later date for sentencing.
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