Woman describes terrifying alleged assault in Bendigo

Cindy* said she had been to an eatery on Friday, March 26 when they came across a group of patrons acting menacingly to another member of the public.

A security guard was trying to clear the scene but a number of people, including Cindy's partner, was 'hip-and-shouldered', Cindy said.

"Everyone was getting shoved, and we just said 'get out and stay out'," she said.

"One girl came in and started calling me names, harassing me and I was trying to ignore her. Then all of a sudden three guys who had been with her came in."

The Advertiser has no evidence to indicate the age of those involved.

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Cindy said her partner stepped in between her and the males and tried to gently push them away to give her some space, when she says the girl tried to take a swing at her.

At that point, staff closed the venue and turned off equipment to try to defuse the situation, Cindy said.

She said she and her partner remained for another 10 minutes and the other group left.

Cindy said that the group of two females and "five to six" appeared to have waited for her and her partner to leave the venue.

She said the group followed her and her partner, hurling abuse at them, before allegedly pinning her partner to a wall.

"Two of them grabbed me. They know I had video footage of them, which I had taken inside the shop, so they grabbed my phone off me and I grabbed it back.

"Then one of them put their foot behind me and shoved really hard. I went down with a lot of force and cracked the back of my head on the concrete.

"My partner was still pinned against the wall and he was calling out 'Are you OK, are you OK?'. I said 'Yeah, I'm OK'."

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The males did not hit Cindy's partner but she said there was a lot of shoving while he was pinned against the wall.

Cindy said she tried to call triple-0 but it was hard for her and the operator to hear each other over the amount of noise at the scene.

The group left after she told them she had gotten through to police, Cindy said.

"I was left with a huge lump on the back of my head - much bigger than an egg, more like the size of a baseball," Cindy said.

Four days after the alleged assault, Cindy said she spent a night in hospital.

"I'd gone to work but my head just wasn't right. I'd had a lot of pain in my arms and shoulders," she said.

Cindy was treated for concussion and damage to the rotator cuffs in her shoulders, which she is still undertaking treatment for.

"It's been awful," she said.

"And not to mention, I've been so jumpy as well. I didn't sleep at all that Friday night when we got home, and had maybe two hours the following night.

"I've been living on about three hours of sleep each night. I'll sleep for an hour, wake up in pain and then all I will be able to think about is what happened."

Cindy said her partner was also suffering.

"To separate us and assault me while he was pinned to the wall has really messed him up. He's a man with good values and for him not to be able to get to me and help, and to watch that happen, has had an effect on him as well," she said.

"We've both really struggled since, to be honest."

Cindy described the attack as unprovoked.

"We didn't know these people from a bar of soap. They were out to cause trouble," she said.

The Advertiser has no evidence to indicate that the incident involving Cindy is related to separate reports of assaults in the city centre on Saturday night.

Police have publicly appealed for witnesses and information on those alleged assaults.

Anyone with information should contact the Bendigo police station or Crime Stoppers.

If this story has raised issues for you contact Lifeline Australia on 13 11 14, or Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636.

* Names have been changed to protect the identity of the couple involved.

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