A 26-year-old Mount Pleasant man has been arrested and charged over three assaults that occurred in the Northbridge Cultural Centre early on Sunday morning.
Warning: This story has details of violence, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.
The man accused of a violent homophobic assault on two men and a bystander has pleaded not guilty with his lawyer telling the court it was a case of mistaken identity.
Cohben Chase Patterson, 26, was arrested and charged following an assault on two men at the intersection of James Street and William Street, as well as an assault on a third person who attempted to intervene.
Police allege that the assault occurred after Adrian Lea and his friend Dom Meridith were quizzed about their sexuality. They were travelling from The Court Hotel to Connections Nightclub, a journey made by hundreds of members of the LGBTIQA+ communities every weekend.
The Sydney Morning Herald has reported that the court heard how Patterson allegedly brough victim Adrian Lea to the ground, kicking him in the head before attacking a third person who he noticed filming the incident.
Police arrested Patterson after identifying him from footage of the attack. He was arrest in the outer suburb of Karnup in Perth’s south on Tuesday. Police then executed a search warrant on his Mount Pleasant home where they allegedly discovered a handgun and a shotgun, ammunition, illicit drugs and drug paraphernalia.
He has been charged with three counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, as well as two counts of possessing a firearm and ammunition, plus drug charges and failing to obey an order from police. The charges he is facing could be upgraded depending on the results of tests on the suspected drugs, and police reserved their right to upgrade the assault charges as well.
In court on Wednesday Paterson pleaded not guilty to all but one of the 12 charges he is facing. He pleaded guilty to possessing cannabis. His layer Roman Kan told the court it was a case of mistaken identity.
Paterson was given bail on a $10,000 surety, with strict curfew and reporting conditions. The magistrate was asked to consider his low risk of reoffending based on his previous history of obeying court orders. The prosecution opposed bail highlighting that Paterson has past convictions for violent offences, and he had been behind bars as recently as January 2022.
His trial has been set from 27th June. His alleged co-accused has not been charged at this stage.
OIP Staff, Image: Facebook
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