Broome McDonald’s creep Johnny Bell granted bail ahead of WA court sentencing
A man who tried to lure five young girls into a McDonald’s bathroom to commit dastardly deeds has been released on bail despite being found guilty and spending the past 13 months in custody.
A jury took five hours to find Johnny Bell guilty of five charges of encouraging children under the age of 13 to engage in sex acts after he appeared in Western Australia’s Broome District Court on Tuesday.
The six-day trial heard that the five girls under the age of 10 visited a fast food restaurant in Broome on May 21, 2022, where they ordered their food and sat down in the dining room.
A drunken Bell was captured approaching and speaking to the girls on CCTV footage played in court.
A man who lured five young girls into the bathroom of a Maccas store in Broome to perform sex acts has been released on bail despite being found guilty of the offence.
He was also caught following the girls to the playground and to the bathroom.
The court heard Bell visited the bathroom several times over what was believed to be an extended period of time.
Two McDonald’s employees from the store also gave evidence.
One of them told the court she saw Bell talking to the girls and milling around the dining room where they were sitting.
She recalled how one of the girls approached her and asked her to call the police so that she and the group of girls could be driven home by officers.
The employee said the girls seemed “scared” of Bell and told her the man was “acting strangely.”
The court heard a police telephone recording of the conversation in which the girl told officers that ‘the man is trying to rape us’.
Another employee recalled confronting Bell during the incident.
The male employee told the court that Bell told him he was the “grandfather” of the young girls.
The girls gave police statements that Bell tried to get them to perform sex acts on him in the bathrooms.
The court also heard Bell also used several hand gestures described as ‘rude’ and ‘rape’ signs.
The girls ran from Bell after they thought they saw what appeared to be a knife in his back pocket.
A court heard how the man tried to lure five young girls into a McDonald’s bathroom to commit vile acts (stock image)
Bell’s lawyer Sally Oliver told the court the five girls had different versions of what happened during the incident.
She also emphasized the need for a neuropsychological report for her client’s pre-sentencing assessment.
Prosecutor Edward Fitzpatrick told the court that the evidence against Bell was substantial and it was ‘impossible’ for the girls to make up what they had seen and what allegations they had made against him.
Bell was granted bail by Judge Vicki Laura, despite having been in custody for the past 13 months.
He was ordered to remain in his home and is not allowed to live with children under the age of 16 or consume alcohol as part of his strict bail conditions.
He will be sentenced in June and faces up to 20 years in prison.