A knife-wielding man chased his ex-girlfriend into a McDonald’s where he viciously beat her, dragged her by her hair and stole her phone and keys as shocked customers looked on.
Seta Ratucadre’s victim has agreed to allow the shocking CCTV footage of her assault to be released by a court after the 38-year-old woman was jailed for a minimum of four and a half years.
Ratucadre confronted his ex-girlfriend outside the McDonald’s in Minchinbury, western Sydney, on January 15 last year when he then violently attacked her.
The woman tried to push Ratucadre away and run into the fast food restaurant, but he chased her while armed with an 8-inch knife.
Three girls sat nearby and watched in horror as Ratucadre grabbed his victim and hit her repeatedly on the head.
As the woman tried to fend off her attacker, he dragged her across the floor and slashed her hand as she tried to grab his knife.
Ratucadre then stole the woman’s phone and keys which fell to the floor during the struggle and as she tried to get them back, he took off her jumper before fleeing the property.
The woman was left with head, neck, arm and leg injuries, including some of her injuries hair was pulled out and a laceration to the scalp from being dragged across the tile floor.
Seta Ratucadre, 38, is shown attacking his ex-partner while carrying a knife in a McDonald’s in Sydney’s west
Ratucadre was convicted on charges of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, using a carriage service to threaten murder, breaching an apprehended violence order and stalking.
The court found that he had a history of violence.
Judge Andrew Colefax said Ratucadre’s use of the knife showed the attack was not spontaneous or opportunistic.
“Rather, it indicates a degree of premeditation,” Judge Colefax said, according to a report in the Blue Mountains Gazette.
The court heard that Fiji-born Ratucadre had already breached an AVO prior to the attack by calling the woman and threatening to slit her throat, before making further death threats at McDonald’s.
Ratucadre had used cannabis, heroin, cocaine, ice and alcohol since he started using drugs at the age of 13 after the death of his father, the court was told.
A psychologist diagnosed Ratucadre with substance abuse, anxiety and depression disorders.
The court was told Ratucadre arrived at McDonald’s smelling of alcohol.
“You said to her, ‘I want to cut your throat, shut up, I want to cut your throat,'” Judge Colefax told Ratucadre.
The woman’s deep cuts on her hands required surgery and she was unlikely to regain full function, the court heard.
If time is served, Ratucadre will be eligible for parole on July 15, 2027.
Following his release, Ratucadre will be subject to a domestic violence order on behalf of the victim, a mother of two, for the next fourteen years.
Ratucadre was sentenced to a minimum of four and a half years behind bars for the brutal attack