Irish teenager left in coma after Oz assault

An Irish teenager is in a coma after he was attacked outside a nightclub in Western Australia. The teen, who has not been named yet, was punched by the co-owner of an area nightclub and then hit his head on the pavement. The attacker has now been charged with grievous bodily harm and attempting to pervert the course of justice.

The Evening Herald reports, Sean Spence, 37, reportedly hit the 19-year-old outside the Evolution Lounge Bar in Karratha, a small town north of Perth, on Sunday February 19.

The Irish teen, who was a tourist, had just been seen off the premises and was standing in the car park when Spence reportedly punched him causing him to fall back and crack his head on the asphalt.

The teen was then taken to Nickol Bay Hospital and - when doctors saw how serious his condition was - he was flown to Royal Perth Hospital. The young man suffered a fractured skull with severe bleeding to the brain and is now on life support in an induced coma.
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A spokesperson for the hospital told the Herald: 'He's still in critical hospital in Royal Perth Hospital. His family flew over from overseas and are with him at the moment.'

Meanwhile, Spence appeared in Karratha's Magistrates Court on Wednesday, where his charges were read and he applied for bail. In his application, Spence reportedly said: 'I'm responsible and am the sole carer for two children. Their mother's a university student. And I run other businesses.'

But he was denied bail and Justice of the Peace Janet Parsons-Smith told him: 'My concern is for the person in hospital because he can't earn an income either.'

Spence is alleged to have asked his staff to erase CCTV footage of the incident. He was remanded in custody to Roeburn Regional Prison until his hearing on Friday at Karratha Magistrates Court. If proven guilty of grievous bodily harm he could get a sentence of up to 10 years of imprisonment.