Two brothers have been charged after intervening to protect a young mother and her children during an alleged violent altercation at a Woolworths in Victoria.
Police were called to the supermarket on Union Street in Kyabram, in the Goulburn River Valley about 200km north of Melbourne, on Sunday, July 20, at about 7pm.
Resident Jade Olds-Spencerbane claimed a young mother had endured ‘relentless harassment’ for months and the ordeal reached breaking point at the Woolworths.
‘The individual… cornered the young mother and her terrified young children while they were just trying to shop,’ she said in a GoFundMe campaign.
‘As the mother and her crying children screamed in fear, [Clint Mulcahy] stepped up to intervene and shield them from harm. Standing right beside him was his brother, Michael.
‘Michael didn’t go looking for trouble, he simply stepped in to stand guard, keeping bystanders and other shoppers safely out of harm’s way while the chaotic situation unfolded.’
Footage published by 7News on Monday showed a 44-year-old man in grey tracksuit trousers and a black hooded jumper attempting to hit someone repeatedly at the checkout.
‘Why would you do this? Why!’ a person can be heard saying.
A man was filmed attempting to hit someone inside a Woolworths store in Kyabram on Sunday
A resident said Clint Mulcahy stepped up to intervene and shield a young mother and her children from harm, with the help of his brother Michael
A child could be seen climbing over a checkout to escape, while another was carried away from the scene.
The same 44-year-old man had been tasered and arrested over an alleged assault on a shop attendant and a police officer 10 days earlier, according to 7News. He was charged and released on bail.
Ms Olds-Spencerbane said Clint is a stay-at-home father caring for his 11-year-old son and that his brother Michael ‘simply wanted to keep people safe’.
‘Neither of them are troublemakers,’ she said.
‘They are family men who saw a mother and her children cornered, distressed and needing immediate protection from a repeat offender the whole town knows all too well.
‘Now, instead of seeing the systemic issues addressed, both Clint and Michael are facing charges simply for stepping in to do what any decent human being would do.’
The donations to the GoFundMe will go towards the brothers’ legal defence, Ms Olds-Spencerbane added.
Police confirmed two local men, aged 41 and 45, had been charged with affray and intentionally causing injury.
A Kyabram resident said Michael and Clint had been charged following the altercation
They were bailed to appear at Echuca Magistrates’ Court at a later date.
Police said a man sustained non-life-threatening injuries during the incident but declined treatment and did not provide a statement to officers.
It is alleged the parties are known to each other.
A Woolworths spokesperson told the Daily Mail the store takes violent incidents seriously.
‘Following Sunday’s incident at our Kyabram store, our primary focus remains the safety and wellbeing of our customers, team and community, and we have offered support to those affected,’ they said.
‘There is no place for violence in our stores or our communities. We are continuing to work closely with local police as they conduct their investigation into the matter.
‘We’ve been calling for more protections, specifically Workplace Protection Orders, to help keep our team safe at work.
‘Our team members are mothers, fathers, sons and daughters coming to work to help customers – many of them young people in their first job.’
The spokesperson said Woolworths welcomed the Victorian government’s move to introduce Workplace Protection Order (WPO) legislation and increased penalties for those who engage in this type of behaviour.
‘But we urge them, and other states and territories across the country, to pass this legislation as soon as possible,’ they said.
