A Perth man accused of kidnapping a girl from a suburban park has been revealed to be the half-brother of Cleo Smith’s kidnapper Terence Kelly.
Ashley Bropho, 39, allegedly lured a nine-year-old boy out of a Doubleview park around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday and forced her to return to her residence 300 meters away, where she lived. ground.
WA police said the girl was treated indecently and encouraged to engage in sexual behavior before a visitor to the house interrupted her and allowed her to flee and alert her family.
Bropho and the boy did not know each other, police said.
Nine News Perth has revealed that the accused man was Kelly’s 36-year-old half-brother, who faces years behind bars after pleading guilty to kidnapping four-year-old Cleo from a remote campsite in in October and hold her hostage at her home in Carnarvon for 18 years. days.
Bropho’s defense attorney, Elliott Tilbury, alluded to the family connection during Bropho’s first appearance in Perth Court on Wednesday when he unsuccessfully argued that Bropho’s identity should be removed because of ‘a’ factually similar ‘case involving a family member and their potential to harm any future. judges.
Residents living near Bropho have spoken of their surprise at the complaints.
Neighbor Jo-Lee Ninyette said police, including forensic officers, were at Bropho’s home Tuesday hours.