Katherine man jailed for 'disturbing' attacks on women, including Bundy bottle glassing

Katherine man jailed for ‘disturbing’ attacks on women, including Bundy bottle glassing

by | Oct 12, 2020 | Court | 1 comment

A Katherine man will spend 18 months in jail for two assaults against women – including one where he smashed a rum bottle over a victim, cutting her severely, before dragging her by the hair and repeatedly kicking her – with the court having heard details of seven previous convictions against him for aggravated assaults against separate women across seven years.

Andy Andrews, 43, pleaded guilty to two charges of assault against two different women on the night of May 18, 2019.

The case was heard in the Northern Territory Supreme Court this month where a record of violent offending spanning just under a decade was detailed as well as six drink driving convictions across six years, including five that were combined with driving while disqualified convictions.

In sentencing Judge Peter Barr said that between 2011 and 2018, Andrews had assaulted seven women on separate occasions, causing serious harm and in two cases using unidentified weapons.

In May 2019, two Katherine women were added to Andrew’s list of victims.

Justice Barr said the assaults happened near the BP Service Station in Katherine in the early hours of a Saturday morning.

“At some stage, you became aggressive over the alcohol,” Judge Barr told the court.

He said that without warning, Andrews punched a woman, who’s name has been supressed for protection, in her face, dislodging a front tooth.

Later, in a separate incident, Andrews assaulted a woman who claimed a bottle of rum was her’s, by dragging her by the hair, stabbing her with a rum bottle and repeatedly kicking her.

“…you were drinking straight from the bottle of rum and you started to get really drunk,” Justice Barr said.

“You became angry, you were swearing and yelling…You took the bottle of rum and walked away into the golf club through a broken part of the fence near the service station.
“MA (the victim) told you that it was her bottle, and you grabbed her.

“She tried to get away but you had her by her hair and you dragged her before hitting her with a closed fist. She tried to call for help, but you put your hand over her mouth to make her quiet, without success, before then trying to choke her around the neck and hitting her over her left shoulder with the bottle of rum.
“She managed to get away, jumping the fence of the golf club and running across the highway to Rundle Park. However, you followed her, caught up with her, pushed her onto the ground and then continued to assault her by kicking her.
“A couple came to the aid of MA and rang the 000 number. They put her into the recovery position and placed a shirt over the deep wound to her shoulder.”

In an impact statement read to the court, the victim detailed shock and terror after being hit by the bottle, which shattered on impact, resulting is significant wounds.

The woman described thinking she would die and that scars on her arm took three months to heal.

In a separate victim impact statement, the other woman described the “hard punch” she suffered to her face, causing her tooth to break and fall out, and the embarrassment she now feels when smiling and talking to people.

“Both victims asked for a DVO for life to make sure that you cannot go near them,” Judge Barr said.

The court heard Andrews was a man who has “demonstrated dangerously violent tendencies when affected by the consumption of alcohol”.

In February 2013, Andrews was sentenced to two months in prison for assaulting a woman with a weapon in 2011.

In May 2013, he was sentenced to six weeks prison for an indecent assault against a female. In February 2014, Andrews served one month for assaulting a defenceless woman.

In August 2016, Andrews sat down to talk to a 51-year-old female victim, and he became enraged, and without saying anything, punched her in the head a number of times before kicking her face..

In September 2017, Andrews dragged his partner at the time out of a taxi and along gravel for what the court described as a “short distance”, and was sentence to three months in prison.

In May 2018, Andrews assaulted two women within a week.

In both of the May 2018 assaults the victim suffered harm. In the later assault the victim was also threatened with a weapon,” Judge Barr said.

In his sentencing Justice Barr acknowledged he had graduated from a three month alcohol and drug rehabilitation program and had seen a psychologist six times but has stopped going and the extent of therapeutic gains remained undetermined.

“You are a man who has now demonstrated dangerously violent tendencies when affected by the consumption of alcohol. Your sustained attack on MA represents a significant escalation in the level of your violence against women,” he said.

“The things you did to MA are disturbing, and the injuries you inflicted amount to a high level of harm, albeit, not amounting to serious harm within the Criminal Code definition.
“Your prior record is clearly relevant to sentencing. I need to make it clear that you are not to be punished again for your past offending, but your criminal record raises the need to emphasise specific deterrence as a sentencing objective.
Justice Barr sentenced him to three years and six months in jail suspended after 18 months.

 

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1 Comment

  1. Vicious sickening attacks on two women and only 18 months of actual gaol for the perpetrator. The courts here in the NT are well out of step with community expectations. What is the answer?

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