OMM Newsroom
A suspect accused of attacking Australian MP Helen Haines with a car outside her electorate office appeared in court on Wednesday, AnewZ reported. Police are investigating the motive for the rare attack on an elected representative.
The incident happened on Monday in Wangaratta, northeast of Melbourne. Australian media and officials said the suspect hit Haines with a car twice, and doctors amputated one of her legs. Residents detained the suspect at the scene before he was arrested.
Haines, an independent MP who advocates on issues including climate change and housing in regional areas, remains in serious condition.
Court documents show that 43-year-old Brendan Nugent, who lives in Tarrawingee in Haines’ electorate, faces three charges: dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury and injuring a public official. The documents also list charges against Nugent for cultivating and possessing cannabis.
According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), at a brief court hearing on Wednesday, the defendant’s lawyer said he had a rare neurological condition called idiopathic transverse myelitis and was being treated for a concussion. The lawyer told the judge that his client had some mental health issues and had been held in custody for the first time.
No bail application was made. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for February 4.
Counterterrorism police are among the agencies investigating the incident. Police believe the attack was “targeted” but consider it an isolated incident. Victoria Police said it had found no prior direct contact between Haines and the accused, and that the motive remained unknown.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese publicly described the attack as an “act of violence” on Wednesday. He had earlier linked the incident to the country’s tense and polarised political climate.
“It is a reminder that the world is a more dangerous and divided place than it was a generation ago,” Albanese told ABC radio.
Violence against politicians is rare in Australia. Federal MPs, state leaders and even prime ministers are often seen shopping, having coffee or attending community events with relatively little security.
