Controversy surrounds Allenby attack

A homeless woman, claiming to be the one to give Australian golfer Robert Allenby aid, tells a different story than he does about the Hawaii attack.

Australian golfer Robert Allenby hits out of the rough during round two of the Australian PGA Golf Championship at Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast, Friday, Dec. 12, 2014. (AAP Image/Dan Peled)

Australian golfer Robert Allenby hits out of the rough during round two of the Australian PGA Golf Championship at Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast, Friday, Dec. 12, 2014. (AAP Image/Dan Peled) NO ARCHIVING, EDITORIAL USE ONLY

A suspect in Robert Allenby's alleged kidnapping and bashing in Hawaii has been seen on CCTV footage using the golfer's credit card to buy alcohol.

Honolulu police say they have the footage of the man buying two bottles of alcohol in Waikiki and are considering it the strongest lead so far.

"Whoever did it is definitely still around, still in town," Allenby said.

Allenby says he was knocked out, robbed and thrown into the boot of a car after being separated from a friend at a Honolulu wine bar on Friday night.

He paid a special tribute to a homeless woman who he says helped him as he was being harassed by other homeless people after being dumped out of the car 10 kilometres from the wine bar.

"I was very fortunate, a homeless lady pretty much saved my life," Allenby said.

But a person claiming to be the homeless woman says she found the 43-year-old only one block from the wine bar, bloodied, confused and arguing with two men.

She told the Nine Network that Allenby asked her to use his one remaining credit card to withdraw $US500 to pay the men to get his wallet back.

When the men became aggressive, she said a former soldier arrived at the scene and intervened, helping Allenby back to his hotel.

She has also spoken to police.

Earlier, Allenby said while he has no memory of the attack, he believed it was targeted.

"Medically, I thankfully didn't suffer anything major beyond some bumps and bruises that will take a bit of time to heal," Allenby said in a statement on Sunday.

The Victorian golfer suffered large abrasions to his face in the attack but scans have cleared him of any serious facial or head injuries and he is hopeful of being cleared to fly in the next day or two.

He went to the wine bar after missing the cut in the Sony Open in Honolulu and says he was at the same bar the night before.

Allenby is expected to play in the Humana Challenge in California this week, but says he doesn't know when he'll next hit the golf course.

"The chances of me playing are very slim, but I'm just taking it one day at a time."


Share

3 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world