Landsborough teens traumatised, 19-yearold arrested after alleged group assault
By Kirra Livingstone
WHAT started as an innocent walk to the local Landsborough IGA turned into a terrifying assault as a group of children were allegedly bashed and threatened with a knife by a 19-year-old.
A group of four teenagers and an 11-year-old child had been walking to the IGA to buy dinner at about 5.30pm on Friday, October 11. The mother of two of the children, Rebecca Coffey, told GC&M News about how the alleged assault escalated from a misunderstanding.
“My son who is 11 and my daughter who is 14 were walking to the Landsborough IGA with their two step sisters, 14 and 16, and their male cousin who is 14,” she said. Ms Coffey said the children were walking near the pub and “my son was being an idiot and they all laughed, and this lady thought they were laughing at her”.
She said the girl followed them and allegedly said “what are you laughing at” and kept following them to the IGA. The eldest step sister told her to go away, which is when she started to yell and swear at them asking if she wanted to fight, Ms Coffey said.
The girl then allegedly said she was going to call her boyfriend. “This was when my daughter ran into IGA to get some help, and by that point the girl started hitting the 16-year-old step sister,” Ms Coffey alleged.
A group then drove into the IGA car park where it is alleged a 19-year-old threated a 14-year-old with a knife. They were also understood to have assaulted him and stolen his phone.
The 19-year-old was screaming at them saying he was going to attack them, Ms Coffey said. Ms Coffey said her two children were traumatised by the event. “It has really scared my kids, my son was the youngest in the group and he didn’t really know what to do,” she said. “Once the fight broke out, my daughter just hid until it was safe to come out.
“I won’t let my kids go out by themselves again, I was never comfortable with it in the first place, but definitely not now.”
Police said: “During the altercation, a man has allegedly assaulted a boy.”
“Police have since charged a 19-year-old Upper Coomera man with one count each of robbery armed/in company/wounded/used personal violence, assaults occasioning bodily harm whilst armed/in company, and commit public nuisance.
