A 22-year-old Sri Lankan-born man has been released after serving 89 days in custody for a violent assault on a Brisbane train, with the remainder of his eight-month sentence suspended under supervision.
Saranees Sivakumar, 22, pleaded guilty to affray following an April 25 incident on a Cleveland line train in Brisbane. Security footage captured Sivakumar and co-offender Baddeley Mawhinney attacking an unsuspecting passenger who was traveling alone. The assault involved multiple punches to the victim's head and face, with the attackers physically preventing the man from exiting the train by dragging him through closing doors.
After briefly moving to another carriage, the pair returned and attempted to steal the victim's bag. During this second confrontation, Sivakumar struck the man over the head with a glass bottle, causing bleeding. The incident left the victim severely traumatised; he subsequently relocated from Queensland. Mawhinney received a 10-month custodial sentence for his involvement in the attack.
During proceedings at Cleveland Magistrates Court, Sivakumar claimed he acted in self-defence, but Magistrate Deborah Vasta rejected this assertion. She stated that striking someone with a bottle did not constitute lawful self-defence and characterised the attack as deliberate violence against an innocent person. Vasta sentenced Sivakumar to eight months' imprisonment, with time already served in custody amounting to 89 days. The remainder of the sentence has been suspended, with Sivakumar released on supervised parole.
The magistrate noted she was restricted by the affray charge's maximum 12-month penalty, suggesting a more serious charge would have resulted in a longer sentence. The court learned that Sivakumar became an Australian citizen the previous year and had relocated to Brisbane from Melbourne seeking employment, though he was homeless and unemployed at the time of the incident.
