- Man accused of throwing coffee at baby
- Queensland police said he fled overseas.
A man accused of throwing coffee at a nine-month-old baby in a Brisbane park has finally been identified by police, but the foreign national has now fled overseas.
Little Luka Burgic was on a picnic with his mother, Erna, at Hanlon Park in Brisbane’s south-east when the man allegedly approached them at around midday on August 27 and poured a thermos of boiling coffee over the baby before running away.
The baby suffered life-threatening burns to his face, upper body and arms and underwent four operations at Queensland Children’s Hospital.
Queensland police raised fears last week that the man may have travelled interstate or overseas before confirming on Monday that he had fled the country.
The 33-year-old was in New South Wales on August 28 before flying out of Sydney Airport on August 31 using his own passport, just 12 hours before police confirmed his identity.
A warrant has since been obtained for his arrest for grievous bodily harm, which carries a possible sentence of life in prison.
Detective Inspector Paul Dalton, who described the incident as a “savage attack”, said the defendant “was aware of policing methodologies” and had been “conducting counter-surveillance activities”.
“This is probably one of the most complex and sometimes frustrating investigations I have ever had to participate in and lead,” he said.
A man accused of throwing coffee at a nine-month-old baby in a Brisbane park has fled overseas and police have issued a warrant for his arrest.
The baby suffered life-threatening burns to his face, upper body and arms.
Detective Inspector Dalton said the man was clearly “aware of what we (police) do to find people” and that officers had been hampered in their efforts when they were initially given the wrong name.
“It wasn’t until September 1 that we were able to put a name to the face on CCTV,” he said.
Even at that stage, we probably didn’t have enough evidence to get a warrant.
“We have since been in New South Wales and Victoria to gather that information and the order has been granted.”
Detective Inspector Dalton said he knew which country the man had fled to but could not share that information while the investigation was still ongoing.
Detective Inspector Paul Dalton (pictured), who described the incident as a “savage attack”, said the defendant “was aware of policing methodologies” and had been “conducting counter-surveillance activities”.
He said the man had been entering and leaving Australia since 2019 and had acted “legally” each time.
“We can’t find any adverse evidence about him in Australia,” Detective Inspector Dalton said.
He said the man was in the country on a visa and had addresses “on the other side of the east coast” but not in Queensland.
The defendant had been a “roving” worker in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria and police had interviewed some of his former colleagues.
Detective Inspector Dalton encouraged anyone with information to come forward.
“People can feel safe now that this person has fled Australia and can report to police,” he said.
“I encourage them to do so. We will not judge them in any way.”
