A nine-year-old girl playing in the park adjacent to the Araluen arts centre was the victim of an alleged aggravated assault at about 4pm yesterday.
She was riding a bike when two men dragged her into nearby bushes, police say.
The girl managed to yell out and the men fled. They were last seen running down a laneway near Beechcraft Court.
“The girl returned to safety,” police say.
They are asking a woman to come forward who was walking a small dog in Frank McEllister Park (pictured) and who may have witnessed the incident, Detective Leith Phillips says.
– From a police media release.
UPDATE 4.33pm
Descriptions of the two suspects are still sketchy but police disclosed this afternoon that the two men were of “Indigenous appearance” and one was wearing a dirty white shirt.
Is there a description of the alleged offenders?
[ED – Not yet released by police.]
Government must sort LAW and ORDER FAST. Or guns are next.
This type of behavior is unforgivable. The patience and tolerance from the community of Alice Springs towards the drunken Aborigine is nil.
This behavior along with the other lawless criminal behavior will not be tolerated. These people will be caught and they will be punished. Aborigine politics and the politeness of bullshit that it is wrapped in has to stop!
Very sad development in our town. Abusers know no colour. Just look elsewhere. Let’s pray this is an isolated event, the girl recovers quickly and the offenders are caught and there are real consequences. That would be a development.
Bring back legally customary law and tribal punishment.
Aboriginal tribal law is often seen as harsh and brutal, but it ensured order and discipline.
If Aboriginal people want to keep their culture, respect their ancestors and their law puts them into a dilemma: How does this fit into the contemporary legal world, and how can Aboriginal people also claim equality and human rights?
Aboriginal people could still follow and practice customary law but there is no law that binds lawyers and judges to take traditional law into consideration
Bring back customary law? The drunken Aboriginal? The offenders are of Aboriginal appearance according to police.
That means they may be Aboriginal or part Aboriginal part European.
Probably the latter, perhaps descended from those nobel white pioneers who fathered many children often with women barely out of childhood, but abandoned most of their children.
Makes sense. Where else would this evil behaviour come from?
This should be a wake call to this Government. If this situation had ended in the worst way there would have been vigilante groups looking for justice.
Wake up government, don’t let this town fall further down the drain.
I want Mr Gunner to respond how this should be handled, then ask him if it was his daughter, does he think he is doing enough?
Psuedo Guru, I agree with you as this government is really not functioning as is should accept three responsibilities every government has towards its citizens:
1 Protect: The oldest and simplest justification for government is as protector: protecting citizens from violence. Gunner is not.
2. Provide: The concept of government as provider comes next: government as provider of goods and services that individuals cannot provide individually for themselves. Security for our proprieties is a service that we are not getting.
3. Invest in talent: The most important priority of government as investor is indeed education, but education cradle-to-grave. Any child on the street during school time should be taken back to his/her school and absenteeism without medical reason should be treated as child neglected.
@ Dr Ongo: Exactly, they may be Aboriginal or part Aboriginal part European; but then the accused could decide under which law he/she wants to be judged.