Aaron Bunch Journalist with Australian Associated Press | Collection of published work | + 61 484 008 119 | abunch@aap.com.au
Ten years for Queensland Boxing Day attack
A man who attacked a family on the Gold Coast after a Boxing Day dispute involving a pink car has been jailed for 10 years.
September 20, 2019
A Gold Coast man who shot a father and son during a bizarre Boxing Day spat involving a pink car has been jailed for 10 years.
Francesco Surace, 44, admitted to a raft of offences stemming from the December 26, 2016, attack at Pimpama including attempted murder, grievous bodily harm, trespass and drug and weapons possession.
Brisbane Supreme Court heard the dispute began when an agitated Surace walked onto a neighbour’s home wearing a pair of shorts and said, “I am here to claim my land rights; this is my house.”
He then assaulted the homeowners with an array of martial arts kicks before leaving the property on foot.
It was the first in an escalating series of confrontations, with Surace later returning in a bid to retrieve his pink Holden Barina.
Things came to a head when he pulled out a shotgun and blasted the male homeowner in the groin before turning it on the son, who lost an eye.
Surace was sentenced on Friday to 10 years in prison, with Justice David Boddice labelling the events tragic and bizarre.
He was deemed a serious violent offender, which means he must serve 80 per cent of his sentence before being eligible for parole.