The family of Brisbane bus driver Manmeet Alisher, who was killed by a mentally ill man on October 28, 2016, wants to know if the Queensland mental health system can be held accountable for the circumstances leading to his death.
Mr Alisher’s elder brother Amit Sharma travelled from India to attend Brisbane Coroners Court pre-inquest hearing held last week [12 December 2019].
Mr Sharma told SBS Punjabi that the court is now seeking more information on the mental health treatment of Anthony O'Donohue before he fatally set Mr Alisher on fire.
“Many of Manmeet’s friends joined me to witness the court proceedings. The court also had representatives from the government departments including health services, police, and the emergency services who attended the scene on 28 October 2016,” he said.
“We are still searching for the answers. Well, if the killer was mentally ill and so dangerous then who let him out to stay in the community?”
Mr Sharma said the family wants to know if the incident could have been ‘avoided’ by the actions of the Queensland health department.
“The senior counsel assisting the coroner told the court that the killer had some sort of chronic psychotic illness. But we want to know who made the decision that he was fit to live in the community.”
The coroners court also heard that Mr O'Donohue had both involuntary and voluntary contact with in-hospital and community mental health services from 2010.
Mr Sharma said that the court was told that he’d made threats to kill himself and public sector workers like police in October 2011.
“We’re desperate to know why was he was discharged from the community mental health service in August 2016? We wonder if this is what they routinely do if someone expressed to ‘kill the maximum number of people he could’?”
Mr Shama said they also had a meeting with the coroner’s investigators.
“They have been very kind and we are hopeful that they will keep investigating until they reach to a logical conclusion,” he said.
Mr Sharma said they want to see someone to come forward to take the responsibility.
“We want to see some action for the sake of the community safety. No one wants to see this happen to their loved ones,” he said.
“We are hopeful that the findings of the inquest in March next year will bring some sense of closure to our family and friends.”
29-year-old Brisbane bus driver Manmeet Alisher was killed on the job when assailant Mr O'Donohue set him on fire at a Moorooka bus stop on 28 October 2016.
Queensland's Mental Health Court in August 2016 declared that Mr O'Donohue was unfit and 'of unsound mind' when the incident occurred, and hence charges were discontinued.
The court had ordered the accused killer to be held at a mental health facility for ten years. In a historic first, the Judge also said the orders could not be revoked for ten years.
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