An 18-year-old man accused of assaulting two young boys at a Canberra shopping centre has been refused bail. It is alleged the man approached the mother and the brothers, aged two and four, from behind, and kicked the children at Westfield Belconnen on Friday. One of the boys was left with a broken nose while the other was assessed for head injuries. Bystanders and centre security allegedly restrained the man for a time, but police did not respond to Triple Zero (000) calls from the scene. The man was arrested on Sunday, and was charged with assault. In a statement, police said they have apologised to the family for not attending the incident. "The policing response to the incident was not in line with ACT Policing's expectations or the community's expectations," the statement said. "We want to reassure the ACT community this is not our standard response protocol and ACT Policing is reviewing the policing response to this incident." Bail refused amid 'a dangerous and volatile situation' The man appeared in the ACT Magistrates Court this morning visibly distressed after a night in custody, with his lawyer telling the court he had significant mental impairments. In seeking bail, the man's lawyer argued his NDIS supports would be suspended if he was remanded in custody, and conditions could be imposed to deal with any risk of reoffending. But prosecutor Marcus Dyason told the court the man had a fixation on young children and targeted "those who cannot protect themselves". "There are no conditions that could be imposed … that could ameliorate the risks to an acceptable level." Chief Magistrate Louise Taylor described the alleged behaviour as "dangerous, impulsive and frightening", and questioned why he had been allowed to be at the shopping centre without supervision. "It's a very dangerous and volatile situation that's been created," she said. "I cannot fathom a decision that allowed him to be alone in the community. "I can't control the behaviour of others around him and bail conditions can only control [his] conduct." The man's lawyer said inquiries were underway as to whether his current level of one-to-one supervision could be raised to 24 hours a day. But Magistrate Taylor agreed the man posed a risk to vulnerable members of the community, and said the jail had a duty of care to provide the required supports while in custody. She also ordered the man's name not be published. 'Police didn't bother sending a patrol', mother says In a social media post following the incident, the boys' mother shared that ACT Police did not respond to "multiple triple-0 calls" for help. "The offender was restrained at the time by members of the public and Westfield security, but ACT police didn't bother sending a patrol," the mother wrote on Saturday. She said she followed up with police multiple times in-person and over the phone "to find out when someone will be in contact with me to help, and no-one can provide much info". "No-one from ACT police has spoken to me about what occurred or checked if my boys are OK," she wrote. Police have since confirmed that two Triple Zero calls about the incident were made, and that officers have now met with the family. ACT Deputy Chief Police Officer Richard Chin told ABC Canberra Breakfast police "didn't get it right". "When we realised our response wasn't up to scratch, we met with and apologised unreservedly to the family involved. "We absolutely should have done better." Minister questions why higher priority wasn't given Assistant Commissioner Chin said ACT Policing was reviewing its response to the incident. "We want to really look into this to understand what happened," he said. "But clearly there was a breakdown in understanding the urgency of the response that we need to provide during this incident and also afterwards to the family concerned. ACT Police Minister Marisa Paterson told ABC Canberra Breakfast she was "shocked" by the police response. "I couldn't understand why there hadn't been a police response to this incident," she said. "And so the questions around why it wasn't prioritised at the level it should have been is very important that we do get answers to this. "We need to understand why this has happened to ensure that it won't happen again." Dr Paterson said the situation should not have happened and she assured Canberrans they could continue to have confidence in calling Triple Zero. "I do want to reiterate that this was a very serious incident that should have had a high priority response, and if you do call Triple Zero in the case of an emergency, police will respond," she said. The 18-year-old man's case is expected to return to court next month.
