A gay man said that he and his brother were attacked by a mob when they were visiting family in Australia.
The 21-year-old victim, identified only as “Joshua” in the media, told the Gold Coast Bulletin that he and his 16-year-old brother were visiting family in the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. Joshua and his brother live in Melbourne.
Related: He killed a man & shot another ‘because they were gay.’ He won’t be charged with a hate crime.
The two brothers were on the bus going to a mall this past Tuesday when a group of around 10 teenagers shouted slurs at them like “fucking faggots” and “gay cunts.”
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After lunch, some of those teenagers attacked them at the mall’s food court. The teens beat them to the ground and then stomped on them.
“They were bloodthirsty, they were animals,” Joshua told Nine News Gold Coast. “The first time was very traumatic but the second time they hunted us down.”
“They were stomping on my head. They were stomping on my brother’s head. They were punching us. They were kicking us. We were both down on the ground. We weren’t able to defend ourselves.”
The attackers only stopped when a security guard came over.
Joshua ended up with several broken ribs, internal bleeding, and a swollen face. The younger brother also had fractured ribs, a swollen eye, and a split lip. They were taken to the hospital for treatment.
“It’s just horrible. It’s cruel,” Joshua said.
Police have arrested a 15-year-old and an 18-year-old in connection to the attack on Wednesday. A spokesperson for the police said that they are still looking for the other attackers.
Joshua, though, said that he doesn’t want to go back to Queensland.
“It was completely unwarranted, it’s just brutal violence. It’s a hate crime,” he said. “I feel like I can’t go back to Queensland. It’s shaken me.”
He also said that he feels guilty because his brother was attacked for being near a gay man.
“I feel like me being gay, that I have put [my brother] in danger,” Joshua said. “It wasn’t once but twice. I have a lot of guilt.”
Both of the alleged assailants were charged with assault occasioning bodily harm while armed/in company. The 15-year-old will face justice under the Youth Justice Act, while the 18-year-old will be tried as an adult.
Two brothers are recovering after a terrifying attack at Westfield Coomera.
It comes as police statistics show a worrying increase in crime in the area. @njkelly9 #9News pic.twitter.com/FZPmyB9T2M
— Nine News Gold Coast (@9NewsGoldCoast) September 19, 2019
