Indigenous teen drowned fleeing with brother from cops

An Indigenous teen drowned as a “tragic consequence” of following his brother into a river to avoid being caught by police after driving in a stolen car, a coroner has found.

Robert George Kenneth Malayta, 18, was found dead by police divers in the Ross River near the Townsville suburb of Kirwan in north Queensland on February 25, 2022.

Malayta’s older brother Shakur McLennan was high on methylamphetamine when he pulled the 18-year-old out of bed to go for a drive in the early hours of February 24.

An Indigenous teen drowned while trying to evade police by crossing a river, a coroner has heard.Credit: AAP

The teen agreed, telling his sister: “Tell mum I love her and I’ll be back soon”.

After his brother stole $100 and a packet of cigarettes, he left a note for his mother: “Mum – gone with big bro to get your money back”.

Police had earlier spotted the car and suspected it was stolen, sparking an investigation to locate it when traffic cameras spotted the vehicle speeding through an intersection.

Officers later deployed a tyre deflation device that stopped the car but the men evaded police by running towards the Ross River.

The pair slid into the water but Malayta struggled to keep up with his brother while swimming, yelling out “big bro, I can’t breathe”.

“I couldn’t see him. It was too dark and yeah when I couldn’t hear him, I was screaming out his name,” McLennan told police.

“His last breath was like ‘big bro, help’.”

The dog squad was called in to try to find them but only came across a glove and shoe in the water.

McLennan called his mother to ask whether his little brother had returned home after he didn’t get out of the river, returning to the scene thinking Malayta was lying injured.

“[McLennan] broke down and cried [saying] ‘mum I don’t know where he is’,” his mother recounted.

More than 12 hours later when Malayta hadn’t returned home, his mother called the police and reported him missing but already suspected he was dead.

His body was found floating in the river on February 25.

After a two-day inquest in Townsville in October, State Coroner Terry Ryan handed down his findings on Monday revealing Malayta’s cause of death was drowning and was not suspicious.

“Mr Malayta died as a tragic consequence of following his brother into the Ross River to avoid police detection,” Ryan said.

He said McLennan’s decision to run from the stolen car and get into the river can likely be understood by the fact he was the one driving and his judgment was impaired by drugs.

The coroner found the police’s approach to the pursuit was “restrained and appropriate”.

Ryan agreed with the officer’s decision to not immediately search or enter the water due to the dark and dangerous conditions with heavy weeds in the river.

He extended his condolences to Malayta’s family.

Anyone needing support can contact Lifeline 13 11 14, Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 (for people aged 5 to 25) or 13YARN 13 92 76.

AAP