A relative of young children allegedly tied up with a rope by a tradie after being caught swimming in a backyard pool has said she was ‘pushed away’ by the man when she tried to intervene.
Shocking footage posted on Facebook showed a six-year-old girl, a seven-year-old boy and an eight-year-old boy in tears with their hands tied together outside a house on Conkerberry Road near Cable Beach in Broome, Western Australia. Tuesday evening.
It is believed the tradie, 45, had been working at the house for a local air conditioning company and discovered the children swimming in a pool at the house.
The six-year-old girl and seven-year-old boy were bound with cable ties at the Broome property on Tuesday afternoon
A fourth boy had also been in the pool, but managed to flee and alert family members of what was happening.
A woman, who is related to the little girl and seven-year-old boy, streamed the shocking ordeal live and said the tradie refused to let them go.
“When we tried to walk in to get them, he pushed me and my mother out of the yard,” she told the newspaper Western Australian.
“When we stopped there, and when that guy pushed me out of the fence… the little (eight-year-old) boy broke the zip ties with his hands and then jumped over the fence and ran down. away.
“It was just disturbing, we were so angry because (the tradie) just yelled at him and told him to let them go, but he just wouldn’t listen to us.”
The family member said the man kept saying he was “waiting for the police to come.”
She said one of the children also claimed the man told them he would “hit them with a big stick.”
The tradie who allegedly tied up the children (photo) has been arrested
Paramedics from St John Ambulance assessed the children, who have now been reunited with their families.
Western Australia Police confirmed a man had been arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated assault.
Police were initially called to the property due to reports of a burglary.
“The Broome man was taken into custody, questioned about the matter and charged,” Western Australia Police said.
“It is alleged that the force used to restrain the children was disproportionate in the circumstances.”
He was released on bail and is due to appear in court at a later date.
The local air conditioning company has since been subjected to online abuse and one-star Google ratings.
An earlier photo on Facebook showed a third child tied up (pictured)
That’s what a witness Leandra McKenzie said The children were sad and cried out for their mother.
“They were scared, they were crying, shaking and singing to their mother,” she said.
“It would have been more than an hour.” . . we shouted at him to tell them to release them. . . but he just wouldn’t give up.’
The witness claimed that the children were trapped for up to an hour, on a day when temperatures rose to 33 degrees Celsius.
The relative said the children knew it was wrong to enter the property, but said they were “just kids” trying to cool off on a hot day.
The children were held for about an hour on a day when temperatures rose to 33 degrees Celsius