Man sentenced after Toowoomba teen beaten bloody in terrifying home invasion

A young man who forced a boy to commit degrading and disgusting acts at knifepoint, has been sentenced over a violent Toowoomba home invasion which left a teen beaten and bloody.

Ethan Knox sentenced for beating Toowoomba teen bloody in terrifying home invasion. Picture: Peta McEachern

A young man involved in a violent home invasion which left a teenage boy bloody, was told he would end up dead, or in prison for the rest of his life if he continued to commit ice fuelled crimes.

On Wednesday, May 11, the Toowoomba District Court heard Ethan Knox, 19, quickly accumulated a lengthy, serious, and disturbing criminal history for someone so young.

The most serious crime Knox committed was “disturbingly sadistic”, where he and a friend held a teenager at knifepoint on a Brisbane train, robbed him, and made him commit numerous “degrading acts”.

During the horrific ordeal in March 2022, the 17-year-old victim was forced to eat discarded cigarette butts, lick shoes, break up with his girlfriend via text message, and the young criminals also took videos of the teen with his pants down before posting it to the victim’s Snapchat.

Knox pleaded guilty to the robbery while armed and in company in March 2023, and was sentenced to three years in jail, suspended for four years after serving 364 days in custody.

The Toowoomba court house, police station, and watch house. Picture: Peta McEachern

Knox was on bail for the Toowoomba home invasion when he committed the traumatic train crime.

Crown prosecutor Sally Dreghorn said the Toowoomba incident involved Knox and his friends, and the group had been threatening a 16-year-old girl on social media.

The girl, who had been with her 17-year-old boyfriend, then received photos of her street sign on Snapchat.

Ms Dreghorn said the pair went outside and saw a group of young men approaching the house, but they didn’t shut the door in time as Knox and a co-offender forced their way inside.

The court heard Knox’s friend launched the attack, but he joined in, punching the boy in the head while his nose bleed.

Knox pleaded guilty to that crime on Wednesday, May 11, which included; assault causing bodily harm while in company, breaking into a home to commit an indictable offence, and stealing the boys phone.

Ms Dreghorn said it was not the first time Knox was involved in a break-and-enter.

The court heard a woman was breastfeeding her infant at 3am when Knox walked into her room, terrifying the woman before her husband chased him out of their house.

Barrister David Funch said the underlying cause of Knox’s offending was his daily meth use, and noted he grew up in a family of criminals, which normalised the behaviour.

The court also heard Knox never had a job and was homeless at the age of 13.

Toowooomba police car. Picture: Nev Madsen.

Mr Funch did not shy away from his client’s history calling the train robbery, “disturbingly sadistic,” and said Knox would end up dead or jailed for life if he did not address his drug and mental heal issues.

However, Knox told Mr Funch his main priority in life was to stay clean and be a good father to his son, who visited him in jail regularly.

Judge Brad Farr SC told Knox if he did not turn his life around and went back to prison, his son would inevitably stop visiting before severing all contact.

Judge Farr SC said Knox and his crimes would not be tolerated in a civilised society, and told Knox he was not convinced he would change, and that no one would believe him until he put his words into action.

“It is all on you now,” he said.

Knox was sentenced to a 12 month prison sentence, with a parole eligibility on May 11.

Judge Farr SC also declared 52 days Knox spent in custody, noting he had been in prison since March 2022.