Wild moment NDIS support worker mum punches a woman in the face in a bar in row over ‘racial’ comments
The moment a single mother of an NDIS worker punched a woman in the face in a bar after ‘telling her Asian friend to leave the country’ has been captured on CCTV.
Natalie Tenina Stauber was sitting with her friends in the smoking area of a Surfers Paradise bar at around 4am on February 12 before a woman grabbed a chair from behind a member of the group, sparking a tense confrontation.
The woman, unknown to the group, sat down and appeared to engage Stauber’s friends in a brief verbal exchange, footage of which was played at Southport Magistrates Court.
Stauber was then seen stepping between her two friends and the stranger.
The NDIS worker leaned towards the still-seated woman’s face and waved a finger as the argument appeared to become more hostile.
Stauber then stepped back and punched the other woman in the face.
A friend stood between the two and Stauber walked away from the stranger, who continued to feel her cheek in apparent disbelief.
In court, defense attorney Farshad Sarabi claimed Stauber first confronted the victim after hearing a racial slur directed at her friend.
Natalie Stauber was seen rocking the stranger with a right hook in CCTV vision played in court
The magistrate acknowledged the verbal argument that preceded the attack, but reminded Stauber that punching someone’s face is unacceptable.
He claimed the victim told Stauber’s boyfriend to “get out of the country” after he grabbed the seat behind her.
“She purposely takes the chair away from one of my client’s friends, who is of Asian descent, and just sits there and stares at them before saying some really choice words,” Sarabi said, according to the Gold Coast Bulletin.
“The complainant actually works in the legal profession … (according to) her statement, so I would suggest that (she) should know better than to say things like this because she may be somewhat educated.”
Daily Mail Australia does not suggest the woman made the comment, only that it was claimed in court.
The court heard Stauber was an NDIS support worker and single mother, who also cared for her own mother.
It was revealed that she had one previous conviction for a similar charge.
The NDIS worker was seen arguing with the stranger after a chair was stolen from under her boyfriend of Asian descent
Stauber was also sentenced for receiving or possessing property obtained by human trafficking or delivery after she was caught dumping a cash-filled pillowcase worth about $71,000 into a clothes dryer with a friend.
That charge was not related to the incident at the bar.
Magistrate Jane Bentley accepted that Stauber’s victim did not appear to be in much pain, and that the attack had been preceded by provocation.
But she said punching someone in the face remained unacceptable.
Stauber has reportedly pleaded guilty to both the common assault and unrelated charges.
The court fined her $2,000 for both violations.