Two Arrested After One Nation Volunteer Hospitalised Following Alleged Torquay Assault

Police in Victoria have arrested and charged two individuals following an alleged assault on a 60-year-old One Nation volunteer in Torquay on Sunday night. Authorities stated that officers responded to a property on Scorpio Street at approximately 7:45 pm after receiving reports that a man had been attacked with a baseball bat.

Investigators arrested a 37-year-old man from Hampton Park alongside a 14-year-old boy shortly after the incident. The adult suspect has been charged with intentionally causing injury and related assault offences, and was remanded in custody to appear in court on November 10. The 14-year-old boy was issued with a caution by police.

Law enforcement officials initially reported that the victim was transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. However, federal One Nation leader Pauline Hanson and Victorian deputy leader Colleen Harkin disputed the severity after visiting the injured man at Geelong Hospital on Tuesday. Hanson alleged the volunteer suffered a brain bleed and severe facial injuries during what she described as a vicious assault.

According to One Nation Victoria leader Warren Pickering, the altercation allegedly began after party corflute signs displayed on the victim's private property were interfered with. Pickering stated that political violence and intimidation are completely unacceptable, telling the public that opposition to a party's politics should be expressed through voting rather than physical attacks.

Political leaders from across the spectrum condemned the violence. Victorian Premier Ben Carroll described the incident as shocking and asserted that violence has no place on the campaign trail. Meanwhile, party representatives announced that an online fundraiser established to support the self-employed victim and his family had raised more than $80,000 by Tuesday afternoon, which included a personal donation from Hanson.