Riots erupt in Australia over Indigenous girl’s death as locals assault suspect
Violence broke out in a remote town in northern Australia after police arrested the person suspected of murdering a five-year-old Indigenous girl.
Jefferson Lewis, 47, was arrested late on Thursday night local time in Alice Springs.
The young girl, referred to by her family as Kumanjayi Little Baby in line with Indigenous customs, was reported missing from her central Australian home late on Saturday.
Authorities located the body, believed to be hers, shortly before midday on Thursday, about 5km south of the original crime scene.
Local reports said a crowd attacked Mr Lewis when he appeared in a local community and beat him unconscious before police intervened.
Police said they had long suspected that Lewis received assistance from people in the community before he appeared at a town camp.
“For him to be able to appear in Alice Springs last night just confirms to us that he was getting support from somebody,” police commissioner Martin Dole said.
“My message to those people is, look out because we’re coming for you as well.”
When officers took him to a local hospital, hundreds of “angry” residents gathered, shouting for him to be killed and demanding “payback”, according to the ABC.
The situation escalated into rioting as people threw rocks and bottles, set vehicles on fire, and damaged property. Police responded with rubber bullets and tear gas to control the crowd.
Several officers were injured in the violence.
The unrest continued into the next day, leaving streets littered with debris and signs of looting nearby. Authorities later transferred Mr Lewis to Darwin for his safety and to prevent further violence.
“As a result of presenting himself, members of that town camp decided to inflict vigilante justice upon Jefferson, and we received numerous phone calls saying he was in the process of being assaulted,” Mr Dole said on Friday.
The violence followed days of search for the girl, who had gone missing from a remote Aboriginal town camp near Alice Springs.
