The mother of one of Cassius Turvey’s best friends says her teenage son was terrified during an alleged attack in Perth that resulted in the death of the 15-year-old Indigenous schoolboy.
A 21-year-old man has been charged with murder following the alleged attack when Turvey and his friends were walking home from school in Middle Swan on 13 October. The Noongar teenager died on the weekend.
Western Australian police have said they are investigating allegations of racial slurs but have made clear they are not speculating about the reasons for the alleged murder. They have said they believe a metal pole was used in the violent assault.
Rallies and vigils are planned across the country amid an outpouring of grief and anger over the alleged murder.
Emily Farmer’s 14-year-old son was with Cassius at the time of the alleged attack. She said her son was scared and traumatised.
Farmer said her son told her that he and three friends were walking home from school when a man jumped out of a vehicle.
“It was terrifying for the kids,” she said.
Farmer said the boys were offered support after the attack but were extremely shaken. Her son had “a kind of survivor’s kind of guilt, he regrets going that way”, she said. “They’re angry, they don’t feel safe.”
Farmer said her son and Cassius were inseparable and had started their own lawn mowing business tidying gardens around their neighbourhood. “They were joined at the hip, always together, they were best friends,” she said.
The mother said the community and online support shown to Cassius’s family had been overwhelming.
“The love and support – it’s been really great,” she said. “I’m actually quite amazed at how supportive everyone has been – if we don’t talk about it, nothing changes.
“These are our children and they need to be in our shoes … this could happen to anyone.”
WA police allege the 21-year-old got out of a black Ford Ranger ute before allegedly attacking the group of boys walking home from school.
Police said the accused man had his vehicle damaged a day earlier but they believed the boys had nothing to do with any property damage.
“At this stage, it appears Cassius was an innocent victim of a violent attack,” the WA police commissioner, Col Blanch, said on Wednesday.
“He was simply spending time with his friends when he was assaulted. I urge community members to refrain from unfounded speculation regarding this tragic death of a young boy. My thoughts are with the family of Cassius at this terrible time.”
A candlelit vigil is planned for 31 October at Midland oval in the suburb to the north of Middle Swan.
Rallies to support the grieving family are also scheduled for 2 November in Perth and the regional WA towns of Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, Broome, Newman and Tom Price.
Actions are planned on the same day in Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong, Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra, Townsville, Newcastle, the Gold Coast and Darwin.
Human rights lawyer and member of the UN permanent forum on Indigenous issues, Dr Hannah McGlade, said any allegedly racial elements of the attack must be investigated.
“It’s devastating,” she said.
“It’s critical that the circumstances are thoroughly investigated. To date, we haven’t seen proper prosecution of racially motivated crimes against Aboriginal people.”
The accused is expected to appear in Stirling Gardens magistrates court on 9 November.
