Northern Territory police are charging individuals with unrest in Alice Springs following the arrest related to the death of five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby. Her body was discovered near the Old Timers town camp, prompting calls for calm from her grandfather.
Key points
Police are charging individuals with unrest in Alice Springs
Kumanjayi Little Baby was a five-year-old girl found dead
Her body was discovered near the Old Timers town camp
Her grandfather called for calm amid the unrest
The community is mourning her death
Mentioned in this story
Kumanjayi Little BabyAlice Springs
Northern Territory police say one person is facing charges and more are expected over unrest in Alice Springs after the arrest of a man in connection with the death of five-year-old girl.
The grandfather of Kumanjayi Little Baby, whose body was found on Thursday 5km from the Old Timers town camp where she was last seen alive on Saturday night, called for calm in the central Australian town on Friday, saying the violent confrontation between police and others at Alice Springs hospital was not “our way”.
Kumanjayi Little Baby
Kumanjayi Little Baby, five, was found dead by police search teams on Thursday. Photograph: NT police/AFP/Getty Images
The town is in deep mourning over the girl’s death of the girl.
Police arrested 47-year-old Jefferson Lewis late on Thursday in connection to the child’s disappearance. Authorities had been searching for him since Sunday.
The Northern Territory police commissioner, Martin Dole, told reporters in Alice Springs on Friday that Lewis had “presented himself to one of the town camps” on Thursday night.
“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,” he said. “We responded very quickly and we stopped that from continuing.”
He said Lewis had been subjected to a “sustained attack” and was unconscious when police and ambulance officers arrived. They had then been “assaulted” by the crowd at the town camp, he said, with one police officer requiring stitches.
“We conveyed Mr Lewis to the Alice Springs hospital and shortly afterward a large crowd gathered and tried to gain access to that hospital and access to Mr Lewis,” he said. “Police responded and we called out all the resources that we had available to quell that violence and disturbance …
“Those people involved, you will face the law just as Jefferson Lewis is facing the law and your behaviour will not be accepted by us.”
Q&A
What charges are being filed in Alice Springs related to Kumanjayi Little Baby's death?
Police are charging individuals with unrest following violent confrontations after the arrest connected to Kumanjayi Little Baby's death.
Who is Kumanjayi Little Baby and what happened to her?
Kumanjayi Little Baby was a five-year-old girl found dead near the Old Timers town camp in Alice Springs after being reported missing.
What did Kumanjayi Little Baby's grandfather say about the unrest in Alice Springs?
He called for calm, stating that the violent confrontations at the hospital were not the appropriate response.
When was Kumanjayi Little Baby's body discovered?
Her body was found on Thursday, five kilometers from where she was last seen alive on Saturday night.
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Mourners leave flowers at the entrance to the Old Timers camp in Alice Springs
Mourners leave flowers at the entrance to the Old Timers camp. Photograph: Rhett Hammerton/Reuters
A crowd of about 400 people assembled outside the hospital as word spread of the arrest. A police car was set alight, four other police cars and four of the region’s five ambulances were damaged, bins and bushes were set on fire and nearby businesses were trashed. One woman was arrested for allegedly trying to set a police car alight. Dole said officers from the territory response group had used “less-than-lethal munitions and chemical munitions” against the crowd.
Robin Granites, a senior Warlpiri elder and spokesperson for the family of Kumantjayi Little Baby, acknowledged people’s anger as the community grapples with grief but urged the town to come together and respect the family.
“It is time now for sorry business, to show respect for our family and have space for grieving and remembering,” Granites said. “Everyone is feeling very upset and emotions are very high.
“Our children are precious, of course we are feeling angry and hurt at what has happened.
“This man has been caught, thanks to community action, and we must now let justice take its course while we take the time to mourn Kumantjayi Little Baby and support our family.”
Dole said Lewis had been transferred to Darwin in the early hours of Friday morning due to safety concerns “for himself and emergency service workers”. He had been discharged from hospital into police custody.
The police commissioner said the violence outside the hospital was unacceptable and “an aberration” from a community which had pulled together to search for, and now grieve, Kumanjayi Little Baby.
“I just call for calm across the community today,” he said.
The NT chief minister, Lia Finocchiaro, said she understood the grief and anger but unrest was neither acceptable nor reflective of the community.
“This week we’ve seen this town come together like never before, hundreds of people walking shoulder to shoulder through the long buffel grass, through the bush, to make sure we left no stone unturned,” she said.
Finocchiaro said bottle shops would be closed on Friday and takeaway alcohol sales on Saturday would be limited to between 11am and 2pm. Sunday already has restricted alcohol sales, and Monday and Tuesday are dry days.
Smashed windows and goods strewn about at a petrol station
Smashed windows at a service station near the hospital on Friday morning. Photograph: Em Jensen/The Guardian
Dole told reporters that anyone seeking justice through traditional Warlpiri lore would have to respect the “one law” operating in the NT.
“There’s one law, and that one law applies to everybody, Dole said. “Including the people that were involved in the violence last night.
“Now Mr Lewis is in police custody. There will be a prosecution and the court case will proceed. I am telling the community that that’s what’s going to occur and that needs to be accepted by the community.”
