Broome kids who allegedly brandished handgun at schoolgirl refused bail, handgun unaccounted for

A handgun used to threaten a schoolgirl in Cable Beach yesterday morning is still unaccounted for, with two Broome teenagers accused of brandishing the firearm refused bail. Two 14-year-old boys appeared before Broome Children’s Court on Wednesday charged with two counts of making a threat to unlawfully do an act, two counts of being armed in a way that may cause fear and one count of attempted aggravated armed robbery. The court was told at around 7.30am on May 7, four juvenile males allegedly threatened a 10-year-old girl with a black handgun while she was walking to school, demanding her belongings and money. It is alleged one of the boys had the gun in his waistband and had lifted his shirt to expose the firearm during the confrontation. The young girl fled on foot and ran to her mother nearby, who confronted the boys but then was also threatened with the firearm. A teenage bystander who witnessed the incident was also confronted, with a motorist driving by catching the incident on a dashcam. Police sent to the area found the four juveniles and took them into custody, with two being released on bail and due to appear in court later this month. Police prosecutor Mícheál Gregg said police couldn’t determine whether the firearm — which remains unaccounted for — was a replica or real after reviewing the dashcam footage. Sergeant Gregg likened the situation to the recent incident in Willetton where WA Police shot a 16-year-old juvenile who stabbed a man and lunged at police with the knife, saying if the deployed Broome police had encountered the teenagers brandishing the gun, they would’ve had to draw their own firearms. He said he had concerns the teens were glorifying gangster behaviour, showing in court the way the accused boy held the gun up to the victims and the bandana worn by another boy. It was revealed the boys were allegedly laughing during the incident, with one saying “there is nothing you can do” when brandishing the gun at the victims. Magistrate Deen Potter said the two boys who appeared had an extensive criminal record and were frequently in court, refusing their bail and citing concerns they could go back and find the missing gun if released. “I’m not satisfied I can put any conditions on him that will alleviate his reoffending,” Magistrate Potter said of one of the 14-year-old boys. The two boys will remain in custody and are due to appear in Broome Children’s Court on May 17, alongside the other two co-accused teens involved in the incident.