By Josefine Ganko and Riley Walter
A father and son have been charged over a large brawl between tradies at a building site in Sydney’s north-west, allegedly sparked by their sacking as subcontractors on the project.
The two men, aged 22 and 44, were fired from the Meriton building site in Castle Hill on Friday, and police allege the pair returned to the Sexton Avenue worksite on Monday morning.
Allegedly armed with hammers, they confronted the two men who had fired them, getting into a fist-fight that resulted in minor injuries.
The pair left the scene before police arrived, but allegedly returned to the building site just before 7am on Tuesday, this time joined by supporters who initiated the brawl.
Footage obtained by Nine News shows the group of up to 50 tradies tussling on a street, with some using their hard hats as weapons.
Two men, aged 42 and 55, were taken to Westmead Hospital with minor injuries, including a broken nose and lacerations above the eye that required stitches.
After a public appeal, the father and son attended Castle Hill Police Station on Wednesday morning, where they were arrested.
“They’re currently inside the police station, being spoken to by detectives, and I expect the charges will be laid very shortly,” Superintendent Naomi Moore said at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
The 44-year-old was charged with affray and stalking or intimidating intending to cause fear or physical harm. His son was charged with the same offences, as well as one count of common assault. Both were granted conditional police bail to appear in Parramatta Local Court on July 16.
While police will allege the father and son were the “ringleaders”, there were 11 active participants in the brawl whom investigators are still working to identify.
“The behaviour is absolutely appalling, and we won’t stop until they are in custody,” Moore said, noting that two parked cars were damaged during the brawl.
“It blew my mind, if I’m honest. It’s a residential street. There are families [who] live on that street, and to be awoken at 6.55am to that – it’s not OK.”
In a statement, Meriton said the contractors involved in the brawl had been terminated and that no Meriton employees had been involved in the brawl.
“Meriton promotes safety and does not condone any violent or threatening behaviour on its job sites, whether employees, subcontractors or visitors,” it said.
The construction site is Meriton’s Castle Grange condominium complex on the corner of Sexton Avenue and Fishburn Crescent.
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