City mum supports State’s crackdown after incident

A Toowoomba mother has been left horrified after her son was threatened by a knife-wielding teen while out on a bike ride.

When 13-year-old Hagen Byrnes set off on a bike ride around his neighbourhood on Saturday afternoon, he had little idea what was about to transpire.

Cycling down Pamela St in Darling Heights, an area he often frequented, Hagen was confronted by a knife-wielding teen who demanded his bag and his bike.

When Hagen returned home, his mother, Lyn Birnie, saw he was visibly shaken.

“He came in and said mum, mum – and explained what happened,” Ms Birnie said.

“He said no to the kid, and at that point they drew a knife.

“He told me: I just put my head down and pedalled mum.”

The pair quickly jumped in the car to see if they could spot the person, but found no sign of them in the street.

Hagen Byrnes and his mum Lyn Birnie.

“Hagen was really upset, it was horrible,” Ms Birnie said.

“He didn’t want to go outside after that because he was fearful.

“He said, ‘If I had been on my scooter, he would have got me’.”

Ms Birnie said although she had initially called Policelink, she had decided against reporting the incident.

“I applaud the police and think they do what they can do,” she said.

“(The kids) know they can get away with it and they don’t seem to care.

“And they are modelling parent behaviour too in some way – they have no decent role models.

“You always think the area you live in is safe, you go to work and do the right thing by society and then you’ve got people around doing this – it’s just not fair.”

On Tuesday, the Queensland Government unveiled a plan to crack down on youth crime across the state.

The tough new measures include the use of GPS trackers for some juveniles released on bail and amendments to the Youth Justice Act.

The trackers are currently set to be trialled in Moreton, north Brisbane, Townsville, Logan and the Gold Coast.

Ms Birnie said fully supported the new State Government plan.

“I applaud this and I think a lot of people do,” she said.

“Hagen is my youngest and he has respect for the police, he understands there are consequences in life

“What’s it got to come to? Your kids can’t even ride a bike or a scooter because they’re scared they’re going to be attacked.”

In a separate incident, police were called to Pamela St later that night after a man was assaulted with a piece of wood.

A Queensland Police Service spokesman said officers were looking to speak to multiple individuals regarding the incident. None were not known to the man.

The man was treated by paramedics at the scene and investigations into the incident are ongoing.