Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Senior Sergeant Gavin Hopwood of the NT Police with a crime wrap, including more horrific details of an afternoon sexual assault in Casuarina

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Senior Sergeant Gavin Hopwood of the NT Police with a crime wrap, including more horrific details of an afternoon sexual assault in Casuarina · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: It's this situation in Casarina which occurred last Wednesday afternoon,
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: about two point fifty in the afternoon. Northern Territory Police
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: are calling for witnesses to a sexual assault that occurred
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: in Casarina. Now joining me on the line to tell
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: us a little bit more is the Northern Territory Police
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  Speaker 1: Senior Sergeant Gavin Hopwood. Good morning to you.
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: Gavin, Good morning Katie. How are you Yeah, really.
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: Well, it sounds as though our Territory police have had
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: an absolutely busy weekend Gavin. This situation in Casarina last
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: Wednesday sounds absolutely horrific.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, it was a horrific ordeal for the young lady involved.
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  Speaker 1: Gavin, give us a little bit more detail if you can,
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  Speaker 1: I understand. About two point thirty in the afternoon, the
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: police responded to the report.
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: Yes, that's right, Katie, approximately three o'clock. It was on
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: Wednesday the sixth we had a report coming from the
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: public of a a b to be a sexual assault
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: occurring in public near the roundabout there the Dripstone and
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  Speaker 2: Lakeside Drive in Casarina. Police were quick on the scene
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: and arrested a man. At that time we established a
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: crime scene shortly afterwards and began to process that scene.
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: Gavin, do we have any idea if the victim was
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: known to the offender?
• 1:33
  Speaker 2: Information we have is that they weren't known to each other. However,
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: we do believe that there are some witnesses out there
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: who know both parties and leading up to this assault,
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  Speaker 2: may have some vital information that could assist us with
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  Speaker 2: our inquiries.
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  Speaker 1: Gavin. Do we know the age of the woman who
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: was assaulted, Yes.
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: She's a forty six year old family.
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: And Gavin, do we know if she was Was she
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  Speaker 1: in the area, you know, walking home or for work
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: or what was going on in the area at the time.
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: Yes, we believe she was in the area with other
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: people at the time. She was a part of a
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  Speaker 2: group of people who were in frequenting that area, and
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: the gentleman may have approached that group shortly before the assault.
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: It sounds like it was a frightening ordeal, no doubt
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  Speaker 1: about it. Gavin. When did obviously, the police first started
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: receiving reports from I'm assuming members of the public driving
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: past or walking past and seeing what was going on.
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: That's correct, Yes, we had calls coming from the general public.
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: Under those circumstances, and we've had other witnesses come forward
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: since the assault based on previous media release. We are
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: still seeking some information from other witnesses who we know
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: obviously were in the vicinity at the time and probably
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: associated with either the victim or the offender in this matter.
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: Okay, so certainly still calling for witnesses and any information
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  Speaker 1: at this point in time.
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: Yes, that's correct, And obviously anyone who was in the
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: area may have dash cam available then would certainly be
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: interested in reviewing that dash cam, and we have conducted
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: door knocks around the area looking for CCTV footage from
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  Speaker 2: residential premises. Again, if anyone out there has any information
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: or any material that could help us with our investigation,
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  Speaker 2: it would be greatly appreciated.
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: Davin, I know that you know something like this. It is.
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: It's an incredibly terrible, terrible incident that's unfolded at two
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: fifty in the afternoon or three o'clock in the afternoon.
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  Speaker 1: You know, it is in an area where I'm assumed
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: not too far away is the university. I know that
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  Speaker 1: it's the time of the day when there's school kids
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  Speaker 1: walking home from school. Was any of that a concern
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  Speaker 1: for the police at this point on Friday, or you know,
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: were you able to get there really quite quickly and
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: get things under control.
• 4:17
  Speaker 2: Yes, we were fortunate on this occasion that we had
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: patrols in the area. Once responded to them, they managed
• 4:26
  Speaker 2: to apprehend the man at the scene without incident.
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: I know, there may be not much that you can
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: say about this at this point, because obviously this forty
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: eight year old has now been arrested. But Gavin, we've
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: been speaking a lord in recent weeks about some of
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: the anti social behavior, public drunkenness that we are seeing
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: around the streets of Darwin. Is this a situation where
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: somebody had been drinking, was highly intoxicated and engaged in
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  Speaker 1: a horrendous, horrendous act.
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  Speaker 2: We are aware that there was alcohol involved in this attack.
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  Speaker 1: Yes, all rightn I know it wasn't the only thing
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  Speaker 1: that happened over the last few days. Some of the
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  Speaker 1: other incidents that we will delve into a bit more
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  Speaker 1: aren't ones that we can ask you questions about. But
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: one that I believe you do have a little bit
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  Speaker 1: further detail on is this situation in Woodroff. Now, what
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  Speaker 1: day did this happen?
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  Speaker 2: Okay, so this job was reported in approximatey two forty
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  Speaker 2: PMIE forty pm yesterday afternoon to a mathage parlor at
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  Speaker 2: the Woodroff shops. A indigenous mail has entered those shops
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  Speaker 2: with a knife, brandishing a knife rather and fled the
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  Speaker 2: scene with approximately three hundred dollars of cash and taken
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  Speaker 2: off in a westerly direction from that shop across the
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  Speaker 2: adjacent park Land towards James Circuit. Police responded there very
• 5:55
  Speaker 2: quickly to that scene.
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: As well, Yeah, are the people that work in there, kay,
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: they must be pretty rattled.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, they are, they are. Fortunately there were no injuries
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: received from the victim. The victim was the only one
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  Speaker 2: there at the time and obviously she was compliant with
• 6:14
  Speaker 2: the demands made of her. But then shortly afterwards police
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  Speaker 2: were notified once the offender of the.
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  Speaker 1: Camp and I note that it was said that in
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: that statement there was issued by the Northern Territory Police
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: that that person was possibly wearing an ankle monitoring bracelet.
• 6:32
  Speaker 2: Yes, we haven't been able to confirm that yet, but
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  Speaker 2: it was noted by the victim that there was something
• 6:39
  Speaker 2: around the ankle and we are certainly exploring that Avenue
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  Speaker 2: Goodness me.
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  Speaker 1: It sounds like you guys are very busy at the moment,
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  Speaker 1: and of course if there is any information that can
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  Speaker 1: assist the police with those inquiries. One three one triple
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  Speaker 1: four is the best way to go about getting in
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  Speaker 1: contact with you.
• 6:55
  Speaker 2: Yes, certainly and we can. Those inquiries will be directed
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: to the relevant investigative areas well.
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  Speaker 1: Northern Territory Police Senior Sergeant Gavin Hopwood, we really appreciate
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: your time this morning. I know that you are very busy,
• 7:09
  Speaker 1: so we appreciate you taking the time to speak with us.
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: Thank you you too.