Zarak Bolga: Man who lawyer says was wrongly charged found not guilty of aggravated assault

AN INDIGENOUS man who spent 100 days in prison after his lawyer says he was wrongfully charged has been found not guilty of aggravated assault

• NT Police officer summonsed to court accused of erroneously charging Aboriginal man

AN INDIGENOUS man who spent 100 days in prison after his lawyer says he was wrongfully charged has been found not guilty of aggravated assault, despite an eleventh hour scramble by the prosecution.

It comes after the officer in charge of the case, Constable Jessica Speckman, was summonsed to give evidence in court when Mr Bolga’s defence lawyer, Patrick McNally, was provided with CCTV footage of the alleged incident which seemed to exonerate him.

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The NT News understands Constable Speckman told Mr McNally, via the prosecution, that no such footage existed. Although, Judge Michael Carey suggested during a previous mention of the matter that Constable Speckman could have been wrongly informed.

Zarak Bolga, 44 from Katherine, was arrested in the early hours of July 29 and jailed in relation to the alleged aggravated assault against his partner at the Mindil Beach Casino.

The Mindil Beach Casino provided the footage the court only after being subpoenaed by Mr McNally.

The footage in question shows the alleged victim being attacked by two women, not Mr Bolga.

Mr Bolga was released on bail when the CCTV footage was brought to the court’s attention last week.

However, at a hearing in the Darwin Local Court on Monday, the prosecution continued to pursue to aggravated assault charge, changing the details of their charge at the last minute and alleging the assault actually occurred later that night at “an unknown location.”

Prosecutor Lee Campbell told the court the CCTV footage was therefore “irrelevant.”

Mr Bolga was also charged with breaching a domestic violence order.

He pleaded not guilty to both charges.

Ms Campbell called the alleged victim to give evidence, who told the court she ended up in hospital after being “hit” and “kicked” by two women.

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She said she didn’t remember how she got to hospital as she was “dead drunk.”

Ms Campbell requested that Constable Speckman also be called as a witness, but Judge Alan Woodcock said the prosecution case had already failed.

“I can’t see how the account in chief can be recovered,” Mr Woodcock said.

“Is it not capable of sustaining a finding of guilt on any onus, let alone beyond reasonable doubt.”

He ruled that Mr Bolga be found not guilty.

Both Mr Bolga and Mr McNally refused to comment on the case outside court.