Blackmans Bay community left in shock after ‘confronting’ alleged murder in broad daylight

Residents of Blackmans Bay have shed light on the feeling in the community in the wake of the shocking alleged murder of Taroona father Reid Ludwig.

ON the surface, everything has returned to normal and it’s business as usual in the relatively quiet suburb of Blackmans Bay.

But, beneath the surface, residents have been left shocked and confronted by the alleged murder of Taroona father Reid Ludwig only four days ago.

A 16-year-old, of Blackmans Bay, pleaded not guilty to one count of murder on Monday at his first appearance in the Hobart Magistrates Court.

The high school student has been remanded in custody and his case has been committed to the Supreme Court for trial.

He is scheduled to next appear on February 3.

He is accused of attacking Mr Ludwig with a knife in front of his young family about 2.50pm on Sunday.

Mr Ludwig was returning a trailer to the Coles Express petrol station in Roslyn Ave when he was allegedly stabbed during some sort of altercation.

The father-of-two later died in the Royal Hobart Hospital.

TRIBUTES FLOW FOR TAROONA FATHER REID LUDWIG

The trailer hire compound behind the petrol station in Blackmans Bay where Reid William Ludwig was allegedly murdered. Picture: ZAK SIMMONDS

When the Mercu ry visited the service station on Wednesday afternoon, many customers were stopping to fill up and local Mary-Anne Clifford had pulled over to add a bouquet of flowers from her garden to a pile gathered at the front of the business.

A handmade sign reading ‘Justice for Reid’ has been placed above the growing tribute.

“It’s usually quiet here and not much trouble,” Ms Clifford said.

“It does worry me, it’s scary. I never thought something like that would happen here.

“It’s heartbreaking for his family. I didn’t know him, but it’s really sad.”

Another local resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said the alleged murder had caused parents “to stop and think about how we let them go about their daily business.”

“Our kids have expressed concern about walking to the shops or staying home alone in light of what happened,” he said.

“[It] makes it hard to reassure your kids that there’s no risk to them.

“Having an incident like this has changed the way people view the kids in the suburb, which is sad, as the presumption of innocence should always be there.”

Mary-Anne Clifford stops to lay flowers from her garden at the petrol station. Picture: EDDIE SAFARIK

A Roslyn Ave resident stopping at the petrol station said she drove past not long after the incident took place.

“It’s not just one death, it has a ripple effect – everyone is just so shocked something like that can go down here,” she said.

Down the road at The Beach restaurant, patron Cathy described the situation as confronting.

“I don’t think anyone is particularly worried it’s going to happen again, but they’re just wondering why this happened,” she said.

Kingborough Mayor Dean Winter acknowledged the concern felt by some of the community in Blackmans Bay.

“We understand this was a very rare incident, where an altercation escalated quickly,” he said.

“We are fortunate that Kingborough has a relatively low crime rate compared to most municipalities in Tasmania.

“Council works closely with Kingston Police, who are members of our Kingborough Community Safety Committee.

“We are reassured by their continued presence and commitment to crime reduction.”

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