Child killers with long rap sheets repeatedly given bail before murder

The teenagers who killed 15-year-old Angus Beaumont had extensive criminal histories before the murder but were repeatedly released on bail.

In two months, Beaumont’s family will mark what would have been his 18th birthday had he not been stabbed in the heart about 8pm on March 13, 2020.

Angus Beaumont, 15, was murdered in Redcliffe.Credit: Change.org

Earlier that night, a friend of Beaumont’s had sold cannabis to the two offenders in an Anzac Avenue park in Redcliffe, north of Brisbane.

The offenders believed they had been given less cannabis than they paid for, so they followed Beaumont and his friend.

During the fatal confrontation, Beaumont stood in front of his friend. He had been given a knife, but it was by his side most of the time.

When one teenager attacked him, Beaumont defended himself, then tried to kick the other away. While his attention was on one boy, the other came from the side and stabbed him.

The crime scene, including a bloody knife, in Redcliffe.Credit: Nine News

Both offenders were seen on CCTV footage congratulating each other as they fled.

The killers, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were found guilty of murder by a jury in June after a nine-day trial and less than a day of deliberations.

Both were 14 at the time of the stabbing. One is now 17 and the other 16.

The 17-year-old’s rap sheet includes setting a mattress on fire at a youth centre, where the flames spread throughout the building.

In another incident, he approached a mother in the street and threatened to kill her baby.

He also attacked a girl and beat her using a scooter.

While on bail for other offences, he was found carrying a knife 13 months before the murder.

Angus Beaumont.Credit: Facebook

Meanwhile, the now 16-year-old killer’s rap sheet includes carrying a knife and drugs, trespassing, and an armed robbery that included threatening to stab someone for their bicycle.

When the murder occurred, he was on bail for two separate sets of offences.

Then while he was on bail for Beaumont’s murder, he broke into a shed and stole a car while armed.

The 16-year-old was born in New Zealand and is not an Australian citizen, so his visa is liable to be cancelled once he has served his sentence.

Beaumont’s mother, Michelle Liddle, addressed her son’s killers in Brisbane Supreme Court on Tuesday.

Liddle described Angus as “a beautiful, intelligent kid with boundless curiosity for life ... [and] plans and dreams for his future”.

Angus Beaumont was killed on the footpath near an Anzac Avenue park.Credit: Nine News

She described her son’s murder as “brutal, gutless, callous and determined”.

“That night you had the choice to leave and let my son live. Instead, you chose to end his life.”

Hours before his death, Beaumont had been making weekend plans with his father, wanting to go clothes shopping and cook a new recipe because he loved food.

“I didn’t even get to say goodbye and tell my son how much he was loved – he had already passed by the time we got to emergency,” Liddle said.

She said one of Beaumont’s siblings had struggled to cope, and she had to physically restrain them to stop them running in front of traffic.

The pair will be sentenced at a later date.