Anthony Mununggurr: Witnesses describe violent unrest in lead up to fatal Yirrkala alleged stabbing

An attempt at peacemaking between rival families turned to bloodshed leaving a 17-year-old with a fatal stab wound, a court has heard.

AN attempt at peacemaking between two feuding families turned to bloodshed in the seaside community of Yirrkala, leaving a family mourning a 17-year-old boy, a court has heard.

Anthony Djurrawut Mununggurr, 50 sat in the dock next to his translator in the Darwin Local Court on Thursday.

Munnunggurr was accused of fatally stabbing a teenage boy during a violent clash between the rival families in East Arnhem on Wednesday April 28, 2021.

Over a two-day hearing, Judge Ben O’Loughlin is expected to hear arguments as to whether the matter will be sent to the Supreme Court.

Munnunggurr has yet to enter a plea to the murder charge.

The hearing began in May, with testimony from Elder Witiyana Marika and the grandfather of the slain teen, but was delayed for four months due to a lack of translators in Darwin, 646km from Yirrkala, in East Arnhem.

Prosecutor Steve Ledek said the hearing would delve into the circumstances before the fatal attack and the aftermath.

Seven witnesses are expected to give evidence, including family members of the slain teenager and the accused.

Munnungurr’s nephew, Tyrhs Mununggurr, was the first witness to take give evidence on Thursday.

Anthony Djurrawut Mununggurr is accused of fatally stabbing a teenage boy during a violent clash between the rival families in Yirrkala, East Arnhem on April 28, 2021. Picture: Floss Adams.

The young man murmured quietly to the interpreter to describe how the violence exploded near his seaside home in April 2021.

Tyrhs told the court tensions had started when an online tiff between a Marika and Munungurr girls had turned to actual violence in 2019.

The court has previously heard the two 15-year-olds were fighting over a boy, causing a series of heated Facebook posts which enflamed tensions between the families.

“It was a dispute between the daughters,” defence barrister David Grace said.

“From two years ago to one year ago, in April, there was still a lot of trouble between the families.”

Tyrhs said on the day of the fatal stabbing Yirrkala Elders had called a mediation session between the rival families.

Tyrhs said he was among the many people to attend the meeting, before the violence broke out.

A teenager was killed in Yirrkala, East Arnhem on April 28, 2021.

He said machetes, “Rambo” knives, slingshots, rocks, sticks and spears were all involved in the bloodshed.

Tyrhs said he watched as three women turned on one of his Aunties.

“They were pulling each other’s hair,” he said.

“It was a lot of women fighting against one.”

He said his father Darren Munungurr hit one of the women with a stick to stop them, causing the crowd to turn on their home.

Drawing his finger from his scalp down the sides of his face, Thyrus described two slashes to his father’s face after being attacked with a machete.

“Everybody rushed in for my dad,” he said.

“I grabbed a spear … and I speared (a man) in the thigh.”

Tyrhs said soon after he was chased by two men, who repeatedly stabbed him in the back.

The young man said he couldn’t remember collapsing, but found himself on the ground with a group of men kicking him, including the deceased 17-year-old.

“They were other men around there too doing the same thing, kicking me,” he said.

He said one of the men was carrying a big stone, which he threw at Darren but missed and hit the 17-year-old.

The remote community of Yirrkala where the alleged murder happened. Picture: Google

Tyrhs told the court he was carried to a house where he was sheltered from the violence.

“All of us, we ran into the house and we were inside the house. All the kids,” he said.

Tyrhs was later flown to Darwin Royal Hospital to treat his life-threatening injuries.

The court has previously heard the 17-year-old was goaded into running into a rival family’s home, after being teased by a teenage girl on the veranda.

Minutes after running into the home with a blade, the teenager burst out fighting two of Mununggurr’s brothers, the court heard.

The accused allegedly stabbed the boy twice with a yam stick in an attempt to move him off his brothers.

The teenager later passed away as a result of the alleged assault.

The court was expected to hear from Yirrkala Elder Gary Munuggurritj, officer in charge Detective Senior Sergeant Paul Morrissey, as well as Jessiah Marika, Troy Marika, Fay Marika, and Darren Mununggurr.

Mobile phone videos from the violent clash, as well as police body cam footage will be used to assess if Munnungurr will face the Supreme Court.

The hearing continues on Friday.

Originally published as Anthony Mununggurr: Witnesses describe violent unrest in lead up to fatal Yirrkala alleged stabbing