A RACIALLY charged mob brawl at Rosalind Park that spilled over onto the streets and led to the bashing of innocent bystanders on Pall Mall, has not resulted in any convictions for five men charged with assault and affray.
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The group of youths was sentenced on Tuesday to community corrections orders and unpaid community work for their roles in kicking and punching victims, during the early hours of April 4, 2021.
Bendigo Magistrates Court was told the men had been socialising at a house party at White Hills when they received a phone call asking them to help their friends who were taking part in a fight at the park.
They got into cars and went to join the brawl, which had been motivated in part by alleged racial harassment of the Karen community.
The court was told the five youths were former refugees whose families had been persecuted in Burma and had fled to Thailand before resettling in Australia.
CCTV played to the court earlier this month showed two men being set upon by a group of eight youths, although three were never identified and charged over the attack.
The footage showed a martial arts fly-kick that sent the victim airborne, thudding to the pavement.
Another man was punched to the face so hard he was unconscious before he hit the ground.
The victims were repeatedly kicked while they were down.
Magistrate Trieu Huynh said the men ranged in aged from 18 to 23 years at the time of the offending and one was still doing year 12 at high school.
"You were at a friend's party that evening, consuming beer," he said.
"You received a phone call about friends being harassed in a racial manner at Rosalind Park."
Defence solicitors for the men had argued that they were from a minority community and would be further marginalised if a conviction was recorded.
The court was told that two of the men's employers required working with children checks, which may be difficult to retain if they had been convicted.
"You have come before the court with no prior (criminal) history or any pending (court) matters," Magistrate Huynh said.
"You all come from supportive families and the support of your community. You all have very good prospects of rehabilitation."
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