Two families brawled at Corio Village Shopping Centre, court hears
A shocking hair-pulling brawl between five women was sparked by a mum’s compliment, a court has heard, with two families then clashing in front of horrified Geelong shoppers.
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Hair was pulled and blood spilt as two families clashed in front of horrified shoppers in Geelong, a court has heard.
A wild brawl broke out between five women inside Corio Village Shopping Centre last year after a two-year-old boy was complimented for being cute.
The Geelong Magistrates’ Court yesterday heard the chain of events was sparked when Karen Fry made the remark as she passed Chloe King in an aisle inside the Woolworths supermarket about 4.30pm on August 27.
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Police prosecutor Kerrie Moroney told the court King reacted with fury, pushing a trolley into Fry and kicking the 49-year-old once to the stomach.
The pair were separated by a staff member, however Fry — who had been shopping alone — quickly called her adult daughters to the scene.
The trio arrived within 10 minutes and immediately confronted King, who responded by punching one of the women with her right fist.
It sparked an all-in brawl between the five females as security tried their best to separate them.
The court heard all of the women were involved in pulling hair and throwing punches and kicks during the melee.
King, 23, was left with a bleeding nose and spat her blood in the face of one of the daughters.
The fight eventually stopped after about two minutes but reignited when King’s father, David King, arrived at the centre armed with a large black torch.
The 49-year-old raised the torch before kicking one of Fry’s daughters between her legs.
He was then chased to the shopping centre carpark by four women before fleeing in his ute.
Senior Constable Moroney said the brawl was witnessed by numerous shoppers and workers, with many of them in fear during the incident.
Fry and Chloe King yesterday pleaded guilty to affray, while David King pleaded guilty to assault by kicking and possessing a dangerous article.
The court heard the two families were known to each other as Fry and David King both lived on the same road in Corio.
Defence lawyer David Nelson, representing Chloe King, said his client regretted her response to Fry’s initial comment about her son.
“She admits she has a short fuse,” he said.
“She completely overreacted to a situation where she should have walked away.”
Lawyer Ronald Davis, for Fry, said his client merely complimented the child after hearing his chortling in the supermarket aisle.
He said Fry’s decision to call her daughters to the centre was not aimed at them fighting a battle on her behalf.
“She didn’t anticipate it would erupt in the manner which it did,” Mr Davis said.
Magistrate Michael Coghlan convicted Fry, Chloe King and David King, and slapped each of them with fines ranging from $1000 to $1500.
One of Fry’s daughters, Chantelle Fry, 32, is set to plead guilty to affray and unrelated charges when she returns to court next month.
Fry’s other two daughters — Bianca Ierardo and Mikaela Ierardo — have previously been fined $800 for their roles in the incident.