Mareeba brawl puts three in hospital with six charged after Byrnes Street attack
Horrifying moment when man celebrating his birthday is knocked out as his friend suffers nerve damage amid Queensland’s juvenile delinquency epidemic
- Brawl sees a group attacking a man on the ground
- The man punched and kicked until he was knocked out
- Fight puts three in hospital with six charged
Shocking footage has captured the moment a vicious brawl broke out before three men were rushed to hospital and another six charged in the attack.
CCTV footage captured the punch-on as it unfolded on April 29 on Byrnes Street in Mareeba, a settlement in the far north of Queensland.
A man in a black T-shirt tries to fend off several youths before picking one of them up and knocking it to the ground.
CCTV has captured a brutal attack in the Mareeba settlement in far north Queensland where a gang of youths assaulted a man on the ground
Several youths then charge at him, punching and kicking him that causes the man to fall over the youth below him.
He is rolled onto his back and remains motionless as several people continue to stomp and kick his head.
Another man in a blue button-up shirt is seen backing into a corner as punches and kicks rain down on him.
He stands up before being pushed causing him to trip and fall over again.
Dan, one of the men involved in the attack, said he celebrated his 34th birthday with friends before the brawl erupted.
He said he saw a group of children fighting with seasonal workers and other youths who tried to storm the pub, which was closed, and shut them out.
“My friend and I walked ahead of this older man,” Dan told the Cairn’s mail.
“We heard commotion because a few (people) picked him. We tried to get him away from them.
‘More and more came, a few quickly became six or eight. They whistled to each other to take down even more people. It exploded so fast.’
Dan said he was knocked unconscious and taken to the local hospital before being discharged at 4am on Sunday the next day.
Even when the man is sprawled after being knocked cold, the youths continue to punch and kick his head.
His 29-year-old friend was flown to Cairns hospital.
He said he was “out for a few minutes” during the attack.
Dan said his friend needed four and a half hours of surgery while surgeons worked to reattach the nerves in his neck.
He said his friend had started to move a bit more at the mouth, but his eyes were still bothering him.
Another 45-year-old man was also hospitalized with bruises, police said.
Police have made six arrests in connection with the incident.
A Queensland Police spokeswoman said a 27-year-old man has been charged with three counts of assault involving bodily harm, as well as charges of fraud and public nuisance.
He is expected to appear before the Mareeba Magistrates Court on May 29.
A 15-year-old boy was treated under the provisions of the Youth Justice Act, while three 14-year-old boys and a 13-year-old face assault and breach of bail.
They will appear before the Mareeba Children’s Court.
Dan said this incident was hardly an isolated incident and he had witnessed many similar brawls in Mareeba.