Three of the people charged with the murder of Perth boy Cassius Turvey have been accused of kidnapping and assaulting another teenager four days before Cassius was fatally bashed.
Homicide squad detectives on Wednesday announced they had charged four people over the violent assault of a 15-year-old boy in Swan View about 4.40pm on October 9 last year.
A WA Police spokesman said the boy, who was the same age as Cassius, was chased down by the group.
“He was ultimately caught and was allegedly punched, kicked and stabbed during the attack,” he alleged.
“It will be further alleged the boy was placed into a vehicle and taken to a house where he was detained for a period of time before being released.”
Murder-accused Jack Brearley, 21, Aleesha Gilmore, 20, and Mitchell Forth, 24, have been charged over the attack, along with a fourth person, Ethan Mackenzie, 18.
During Mackenzie’s unsuccessful bail hearing in Midland Magistrates Court on Wednesday morning, police prosecutors claimed the attack, like Cassius’, was a case of mistaken identity.
It’s understood the boy was allegedly targeted in vigilante efforts to find the person who damaged a vehicle days earlier, which is also why Cassius was allegedly targeted four days later.
It’s alleged Brearley and Forth chased the victim along a street and punched and stabbed him on a driveway.
The victim was then allegedly bundled into a car where two people in the back were wearing ski masks.
Police claim the pair alerted Brearley and Forth they had the wrong person.
Multiple surgeries were not enough to save the boy, who passed away yesterday after being placed in an induced coma.
Jack Steven James Brearley, 21, was originally charged with one count of unlawful wounding, but homicide squad detectives upgraded the charge to murder.
Police say they drove the teenager to a house but released him shortly afterwards, allegedly threatening to hurt him if he said anything about the ordeal.
Police prosecutors alleged the incident was “intrinsically linked” to Cassius’ homicide case, and showed a violent pattern of behaviour over a short period of time.
Brearley, Forth and Mackenzie have been accused of detaining another with the intent to compel the doing of an act, and aggravated unlawful wounding.
Gilmore is accused of detaining another with the intent to compel the doing of an act.
