A teenager who allegedly nearly hacked a stranger’s hand off with a machete in a Melbourne shopping centre has been granted bail by a judge who then told him “I wish you the best of luck”.
The 14-year-old, who cannot be identified due to his age, was released on Thursday to live with his grandparents and return to school after Supreme Court Justice Christopher Beale decided that rehabilitation was more in the public interest than keeping the accused in jail.
Justice Beale made the decision despite reports that the teenager, who is charged with armed robbery, intentionally causing serious injury, assault, affray and using a controlled weapon, is gang affiliated and had attacked staff and made threats while locked up in youth detention.
“He is surrounded by negative peer influences … at some point he’s going to get out,” Justice Beale said after the court heard psychiatric assessments that the teenager’s risk of re-offending depended on him being able to avoid being negatively influenced by his peers, the Herald Sun reported.
“Which better serves the protection of the community? Disengaging him from those negative peer influences that surround him day in day out at the moment, or leaving him there.”
The teenager’s alleged victim, Indian immigrant Saurabh Anand, 33, who given permanent residency as a result of the alleged attack at the Central Square Shopping Centre in Altona Meadows on July 19, opposed bail and said the decision had left him shocked and fearful for his life, The Age reported.
“I cannot understand or accept this,” said Mr Anand, who almost lost his hand, has no feeling in his wrist or fingers and requires ongoing medical treatment.
“This group of people nearly killed me and my life has been forever changed by that night. I will never be able to go back to the way I was before this attack,” he said.
“To be rehabilitated, the first step is remorse or recognition from him that he has done something wrong. I don’t see any evidence of that yet.”
Justice Beale told the teenager he owed it to his grandparents to “do the right thing”.
“Your grandparents, who love you very much and who you love, have been here every step of the way for you and it’s their support of you which makes it possible for me to release you on bail,” he said.
“Stick to all the bail conditions I’m going to impose and if you do that it’ll make a world of difference with what happens in the children’s court.”
The teenager will appear in Melbourne Children’s Court on October 10.
Header image: Left, Saurabh Anand (Facebook). Right, Central Square Shopping Centre (Google Street View).
