Monster’s DV past is a shame on system
KILLER bikie Lionel Patea routinely bashed another partner – and attacked a teenager who tried to help when the woman was pushed from a moving car – but was never held to account because charges were dropped.
Non-inquest findings into the death of Tara Brown handed down by Deputy State Coroner Jane Bentley on Wednesday paint a shocking picture of Bandido bikie Patea’s history of abuse against his former partner referred to as “H”.
Ms Brown was aged 24 when she died after sustaining shocking head injuries on September 8, 2015.
Patea had followed her car and after crashing, beat her with a water hydrant cover.
He is now serving a lifesentence for her murder and the unrelated killing of Gold Coast father Greg Dufty.
The findings show another woman ended a three-year relationship with Patea in 2009, stating he was “frequently violent and whenever they argued he would lose his temper very quickly and would punch her”.
She also claimed Patea threatened to kill himself if she refused to reconcile following their break-up and on one occasion, she was forced to cut a rope from Patea’s neck after finding him frothing at the mouth following a suicide attempt.
“On occasions, Mr Patea pushed H to the ground and kicked her in the head numerous times,” Ms Bentley wrote.
The findings reveal a Domestic Violence Protection Order application lodged by the woman on February 15, 2010, detailed a chilling attack against the woman, where a friend was walking her to her car after work and Patea arrived.
He took her car keys from the friend and attacked the woman, tearing her shirt and pulling her into the vehicle before reversing out of the carpark, the findings state.
The woman tried to stop him leaving but Patea told her: “If you don’t shut up I will seriously hurt you” before driving away erratically with H inside the vehicle, Ms Bentley wrote.
Patea allegedly threw the woman’s bag from the car and began punching her in the face and ribs before pushing her from a moving car.
Shockingly, the findings reveal a 13-year-old girl ran to the woman’s assistance but Patea stopped the car and got out as the girl called for help, threatening her: “If you tell anyone about this I’ll come and find you.”
When the teenager told Patea police were on the way, he grabbed her by the left wrist and pulled her toward the car.
The 13-year-old girl was able to run away but Patea got back into the car and chased her down the street before catching up to her, the findings reveal.
“He got out of the car and ran towards her, grabbed her left shoulder, spun her around and grabbed her shirt … she scratched at him and hit him in the eye as she was afraid he was going to rape her,” the woman told police at the time.
The findings state Patea then pushed the girl into the car where she hit her head before she started running away. He told her to “get back here”.
Patea later threatened to kill H’s new partner and his family via text message, but police never obtained the messages and had not yet served him with a temporary DV order, the findings reveal.
The temporary protection order between the pair was not served on Patea until February 25 and a formal order was not issued until March 17, the non-inquest findings reveal. Patea was later charged with unlawful use of a motor vehicle, robbery, deprivation of liberty, assault occasioning bodily harm and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.
H withdrew her complaint
in May 2010 – three months after the violent car incident – telling police she wanted to “move on with her life” and did not want to give evidence against the man in court.
In December that year, she found Patea asleep in her home. “He reportedly became enraged and punched several holes in the walls, then started smashing all the windows of the vehicle and denting the panels. H ran next door for refuge,” Ms Bentley wrote.
The neighbours called police but Patea left the scene, later turning himself into police and telling them he was mad at the woman for having
an abortion “without consulting him”.
Patea was charged with breaching the protection order and wilful damage, but received only a $1000 fine and 18 months’ probation.
He completed a men’s domestic violence intervention program, where he was regarded a “high-risk respondent” the findings show.
“There are clear parallels between the behaviours perpetrated by Mr Patea against H and then a few years later against Ms Brown,” the Coroner wrote.
“Research demonstrates that domestic violence protection orders are effective when breaches are swiftly responded to and there are punitive consequences for these breaches. However, the consequences Mr Patea received for his repeated violent assaults against H suffered were minimal, which as opposed to deterring future behaviours, may have encouraged them.”