James Borth faces court over attempted murder charge, allegedly at Hobart’s Qantas call centre

NAMED: The man behind an alleged attempted murder at Hobart’s Qantas call centre, who has also been accused of a crime spree in the lead up.

James Borth faces attempted murder charge after Hobart Qantas call centre incident. Picture: Facebook

A West Moonah man has been charged with attempted murder following his greater Hobart spree on Wednesday, which resulted in a car smashing through the glass front entrance of a Qantas and TPG call centre.

James Eric Lachlan Borth, 55, faced Magistrate Marica Duvnjak in the Hobart Magistrates Court for the first time on Thursday after being formally charged earlier this morning.

Mr Borth was charged with a total of 12 offences, including attempted murder at the Dowsing Point call centre, arson of a West Moonah home and motor vehicle theft of a Toyota Hiace from a Claremont property.

James Borth faces attempted murder charge after Hobart Qantas call centre incident. Picture: Facebook

The other charges include cultivating the controlled plant cannabis, doing an act which resulted in the death of an animal and unlawfully setting fire to clothes, all at the West Moonah property.

Mr Borth is also charged with common assault by allegedly threatening a woman known to him with a knife and a meat cleaver, stealing car keys, attempted motor vehicle stealing of a Subaru XV and motor vehicle theft of a Toyota Hiace, all stemming from a Claremont property.

Mr Borth is then accused of evading police in aggravated circumstances in the stolen Toyota car including failing to pull over for a police vehicle and charged with dangerous driving where he is alleged to have run a red light at Brooker Highway and Goodwood Road and at Goodwood Road and Howard Road, driving on a traffic island and driving at 80km/h in a 15km/h zone in the Qantas and TPG call centre car park.

At the Dowsing Point call centre, Mr Borth is charged with unlawfully injuring property by driving through the front entrance with the stolen car and then charged with attempted murder.

A lawyer for Mr Borth asked for an adjournment without plea while also stating no bail application would yet be made.

Police accuse a man allegedly armed with a knife of crashing a stolen vehicle into a Qantas call centre at Goodwood. Picture: Genevieve Holding

An application for an interim family violence order was also approved.

Tasmania Police Inspector Jason Klug told media on Wednesday that police were called to a disturbance at a Claremont home about 9.30am.

Police will allege they “saw the suspect leaving the Claremont property in a vehicle, but lost sight of the car approaching the road to the call centre.”

Inspector Klug alleged the man then rammed the front entrance of the call centre at about 10.30am before being taken into custody by police.

Qantas confirmed that one employee received minor injuries and was taken to the Royal Hobart Hospital.

The Sixth Ave home in West Moonah Police believe is linked to Wednesday's car ramming at a Qantas call centre. Picture: Genevieve Holding

Later, police alleged a woman had an “altercation” with Mr Borth resulting in her injuries.

Staff were immediately evacuated from the centre into surrounding carparks at ­Dowsing Point while the car remained wedged in the building’s front entrance.

Police were also called to the West Moonah home on Sixth Ave after reports of a fire and were investigating whether the incidents were linked.

Mr Borth was remanded into custody to appear in court on April 17.