Sunshine Court: Matthias Hanssens refuses to attend sentencing for knife-wielding at Watergardens Shopping Centre
An “unstable” Delahey man who used a stolen knife to threaten people at Watergardens Shopping Centre, has refused to appear before court.
West
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An “unstable” Delahey man, accused of using a stolen knife to threaten people at a Melbourne shopping centre has refused to appear for his hearing from custody.
Matthias Hanssens, 30, did not turn up for his sentencing hearing from custody via an audio-visual link at the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday.
Hanssens, who has spent 165 days in pre-sentence custody, has been charged with armed criminal intent, theft, making threats to kill and two counts of unlawful assault.
In May this year, Hanssens allegedly stole a knife from a grocery store at Watergardens Shopping Centre in Taylors Lakes before allegedly using the weapon to assault and threaten a 21-year-old man and a 20-year-old woman.
Terrified shoppers ran from the scene and locked themselves inside shops before the centre was placed into lockdown.
With assistance from the public, Hanssens was arrested and then later charged.
On Tuesday, Hanssens was set to receive a combination sentence of time served and a community corrections order, but the pre-sentence detention registry informed the court he was refusing to appear.
Magistrate Graeme Keil said Hanssens not showing up “reflected badly” on him.
“I want to be as fair as I can, but if he’s uncooperative … it may be the case he’s uncooperative with the corrections order,” he said.
Hanssens was given a sentence indication at a previous hearing and was assessed for a community corrections order and found suitable.
His lawyer Josh Bowden said Hanssens was made aware of an inpatient assessment order, which could be why he refused to show up.
But Mr Keil said Hanssens’ lack of co-operation “for whatever reason” begged the question of why he should be given a community corrections order.
“My position is … he shouldn’t be getting the order and further time in custody may be the appropriate sanction,” he said.
The court heard Hanssens had been transferred to three pre-detention centres since May and he was now at Port Phillip in a protection unit.
Hanssens had been involved in an incident at the Ravenhall Correctional Centre before he was moved to Port Phillip.
The court heard Hanssens found it “challenging” to feed himself and take his medications when he got in “low mood episodes” and his mental health treatment was “complex”.
The prosecutor said police had “major concerns” about his release.
“He’s not willing to engage, and having him release on something like a CCO, we rely on him to engage regularly to keep our community safe,” she said.
“When he gets in these moods and he can’t even feed himself, let alone take his medication, that places the community at a huge risk.”
The prosecution submitted police were not “confident” about his release because he was “quite unstable”.
Mr Keil said after attacks like in Sydney’s Bondi, the community feared people who were “so unstable”.
“It’s speculation, but that’s why we have to have a firm structure to assist a cooperative accuse.”
Hanssens was remanded in custody and his matter was adjourned until later this month.
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