The 85-year-old grandmother who was brutally robbed in Nightcliff last week has spoken publicly about the ordeal for the first time. Read what happened.
Despina Politis fell to the ground and had her handbag stolen in the parking lot of the Nightcliff Gym on Wednesday afternoon.
In her first interview since the attack, the grandmother said she had little memory of the incident, and although she was conscious, she lost consciousness for several hours after the attack.
“When I was walking down the street to go to the club, I saw two children close together,” she said.
“They threw me to the ground, pushed me to the ground and then took my bag.
“I asked for help and four people from inside the club came to help me and a man who knows my family came to see Bobby to tell her what happened to me. I couldn’t remember anything.”
One of Despina’s five daughters, Poppy Politis, wrote a letter to Premier Natasha Fyles after the attack on her mother which she posted on social media criticizing the Labor government’s approach to fighting crime.
After the robbery, the girls fled to a nearby street, and thanks to smartphone tracking, the handbag and wallet were found in a house just minutes from the gym, but credit cards, ID and about $60 in cash were taken.
Despina Poppy Politis
The older girl, 19, then allegedly tried to use a credit card and ID from Despina’s wallet, but a eagle-eyed BWS employee refused to sell because the ID didn’t match and police were contacted.
The precious gold cross that Despina had owned for decades was returned along with the handbag.
Despina and her late husband Skifos had a number of businesses in Darwin from the 1950s onwards, most notably the Aralia Street supermarket, which they built and opened in 1978.
A mural on the wall outside the supermarket includes an image of the couple’s engagement photo.
Skifos arrived in Darwin in 1954, and Despina arrived five years later on the first Qantas flight to Darwin – the so-called Kangaroo Route – which included a stop in Greece.
“Darwin didn’t have a lot of people, but everyone lived like family,” she said. “It was different, we never locked the doors. Never. If you had a party everyone would be there because there weren’t a lot of people.
Alcohol is responsible for many of the problems currently affecting the Northern Territory, Despina said.
“There is no respect from children for their parents,” she said.
“The kids used to work, and everyone worked once and was happy, but it doesn’t happen that way anymore.”
She said she would stay in Darwin because her family was here, but she would not forget the events of last week.
Aralia Street mural, Nightcliff with Despina and Skyphos’ engagement photo.
“It won’t be the same,” she said.
“I want my family with me when I go out again.”
Despina declined to be photographed for this story because she fears retaliation for speaking out.
A 19-year-old woman has been charged with theft and released on bail to appear in Ouadi District Court on 16 January.
The two children are believed to be around eight years old, and are under the legal age for criminal prosecution in the Northern Territory.
Poppy said her mother had been inundated with messages of support, but said it was the government’s responsibility to make Darwin safer.
She also questioned the location of next month’s court hearing.
She said: “Why is this girl being tried in court, and not even in the same place where this happened?”
“Does this mean the public doesn’t hear about it? So we can’t make a witness impact statement read? We want to see what happens but it’s all back again.”
Nightlcliff Sport Club car park where the robbery occurred. Photo: Pema Tamang Baakharin
“Her independence has been stolen from her, and now she is worried about going anywhere on her own. She has been independent and self-reliant all her life and should be able to live her days happy and be able to go out without fearing for her life.
Opposition Leader Lea Finocchiaro, who contacted Despina’s family after news of the attack emerged, said violence in the Northern Territory had increased.
Ms Finocchiaro said: “In March, after Declan Lafferty’s death, Natasha Fyles said she wanted to ‘stop crime before it takes hold’.
“Since then, the crimes have become more frequent, more brutal, more brazen, and are committed by increasingly younger criminals.
“On Friday, Joel Bowden said the alleged perpetrators of this attack were children behaving inappropriately.” Not eating your vegetables is inappropriate behavior, and brutally attacking an elderly woman is not inappropriate behavior, it is committing a serious, life-changing crime.
He added: “The Labor Party continues to downplay this appalling level of violence, which in their view is shameful.”