‘Stop filming’: Victim slams witnesses who filmed brutal attack

A 22-year-old man who was beaten senseless by a group of strangers in a road rage attack in Perth has slammed witnesses who did nothing to help him or his twin brother, who was also involved in the attack.

Todd Allsop was brutally dragged from his car and bashed in the Western Australian suburb of Northbridge on Saturday night, but instead of witnesses helping him, they simply filmed the incident on their smart phones. Glenn Allsop was also injured during the attack. The brothers are now begging bystanders to intervene and offer help rather than trying to film what could be the next viral video for social media. In this particular instance, Todd was rushed to hospital in the back of an ambulance. 

The attack took place in the city’s bustling nightclub district when Todd was on his way home from a night out with his mother and Glenn. A fight is believed to have broken out after a woman stepped in front of Todd’s car at a busy intersection. Todd’s mother is thought to have beeped her horn to get the girl off the road, sending the woman’s male friends into a frenzy.

The men kicked and punched Todd as they dragged him out of the car, while they also launched an attack on Glenn. Instead of helping the family who were clearly in distress, others in the area pulled out their phones and filmed the incident. Todd was eventually rushed away in an ambulance with serious spinal injuries.

Speaking to Seven News in Perth, the brothers were disappointed others didn’t help them when they were in need.

“That what hurts me about people now,” Todd said. “Their first reaction is to pull out their phone and film it. You’ve got to have at least one or two people who would want to step in and say, you know, lay off.”

Police are now urging anyone who filmed the attack to come forward, as it could offer vital clues in identifying the attackers. Meanwhile, Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan has also encouraged people to actually help, rather than filming.

“It seems to be part of the modern age,” he told reporters at a press conference. “But if you can safely assist someone in need, my advice is if you can do it safely, you should do it.”

“But you got to have one or two people who’d want to step in and say you know, lay off.”

Filming attacks and racist outbursts in public is becoming the norm for many Australians. While footage can certainly help police identify attackers, it’s worrying when so many people who can offer assistance choose to film instead.

In 2017, an anti-Asian rant was captured on board a Sydney train. The anonymous woman who filmed the video, said she wasn’t able to step in because she was also Asian and feared the abuse would turn to her. She told ABC News not one of the 15 people in the carriage offered assistance. It all started after the woman being abused asked her attacker not to litter.

Another example occurred last year when Facebook user Nicolas John spotted Sydney train commuters becoming racist after an Argentinian man was caught travelling with the wrong ticket.

He tried to explain the situation to a ticket inspector, when another passenger shouted: “Fine him, love. F***ing foreigners … F*** off back to Iran mate”. While that incident wasn’t filmed, it was written about on social media.

What do you think? Have Australians lost their way when it comes to helping out people in need? Would you feel confident that someone who offer assistance to you if you were being attacked?