Chilling video captured moments before a teenage boy allegedly deliberately ran down a cyclist captured his passenger allegedly saying; “hit him”, a court has been told.
The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named, appeared in the Victorian Supreme Court on Monday where he was granted bail under strict conditions after spending 47 days in a youth remand centre.
Police allege the youth was driving a stolen Holden Astra when he struck two cyclists on Beach Rd in Beaumaris in the early hours of January 23 during a 10-day crime spree.
The vehicle was allegedly involved in a “near miss” with a cyclist a short time before Glenn Gibson, 51, was struck from behind.
About 2 km further down the road, 72-year-old Gavin Gallan was allegedly hit by the Astra, with a juvenile occupant of the car allegedly sharing the video on Snapchat.
Prosecutor Anthony Albore told the court the front seat passenger, a 14-year-old boy, was allegedly recorded saying; “hit him, hit him, hit him”, before Mr Gallan was struck.
Laughter allegedly broke out in the car, before one boy, possibly the accused driver, said; “Oh s–t, oh f–k, my bad”.
Opposing bail, Mr Albore said police held concerns he could be a risk to the safety of any person if released.
“On the prosecution case he intentionally drove a stolen vehicle into not one but two cyclists,” he said.
“This was not a momentary lack of attention but two discrete acts on the same stretch of road.”
Detective Senior Constable Nick Heyne said the vehicle was allegedly dumped 500m to 1km away, with the three occupants picked up in a Nissan Pathfinder which had been driving alongside the Astra.
He told the court the 16-year-old boy could allegedly be identified as the driver in the footage.
Police allege both vehicles were stolen two days earlier.
Six juvenile boys have been charged in the wake of the alleged hit-runs, most with theft of a motor vehicle, the court was told.
In the following days, the 16-year-old was allegedly involved in a break-in, an armed robbery of another youth armed with an axe, and a collision in the Pathfinder before his arrest on January 31.
The court was told the boy, who lived with his aunt and uncle, had left home on New Year’s Eve and had been staying with friends until his arrest.
“He said he was okay and didn’t want to come home,” his uncle said.
His uncle gave evidence that he would keep a “close eye” on the boy and promised to report any breaches of bail to police.
The court was told the boy had been adopted by family in New South Wales at the age of 6, but was sent down to live with relatives in Melbourne in 2022 because of “challenging behaviours”.
The court was told he had been approved for a supervised bail program by Victoria’s youth justice agency, with team leader Thomas McGregor expressing concerns that if he remained in custody he could be exploited by “more entrenched” youths.
He said the boy did not have any prior convictions and had engaged “openly and honestly” with the service.
The boy’s barrister, David De Witt, conceded the allegations were very serious, but told the court the claim he was the driver would be disputed.
He said as an alleged first-time offender, a period of detention was not ‘inevitable” and there was a serious prospect of delay in the case.
Justice Michael Croucher described the alleged offending as “chilling”, saying the two cyclists had effectively been left for dead.
“I found this difficult… I don’t think I’ve ever refused a child at this age bail — but I nearly did,” he said.
The boy will be released on the condition he return to live with his uncle, comply with a curfew, not contact any co-accused boys, not get behind the wheel of a car, and follow all instructions of youth justice.
He will return before a children’s court on charges including reckless conduct endangering life, intentionally causing serious injury and driving in a manner dangerous, at a later date.