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The Courier Mail

By Jodie Munro O’Brien

June 19, 2008 11:35am

A REGENTS PARK man has been committed to stand trial for murder over a 2007 road rage incident that resulted in the death of a man.
Neil James Robertson, 48, appeared in the Beenleigh Magistrates Court recently and was committed to stand trial on murder and other charges in the Brisbane Supreme Court at a date yet to be determined.

Police said Robertson caused a car – with a toddler in the back and driven by Aaron Lewis-Priest – to crash on October 12, 2007, on Browns Plains Road in Logan, after he had followed him from a shop and continuously rammed him.

Robertson was allegedly reversing out of the Choice Liquor Barn at Browns Plains in his Kingswood utility about 7pm October 12 when four teenage men who were entering their car yelled at him to slow down.

Mr Lewis-Priest, 21, Matthew Brown, Wesley Teturia and Mitchell Morris had just picked up supplies from the Browns Plains Tavern for a BBQ that evening.

Police said Robertson became angry and followed the men – who were in a Holden Commodore Station wagon with 18-month-old Jada Donovan – east along Browns Plains Road.

Mr Lewis-Priest allegedly increased his speed to try to get away from Robertson, but witnesses told police Robertson rammed into the rear of the station wagon about six times.

The final tap is believed to have sped the Commodore wagon out of control and into a power pole, where the car split in two, police said.

Mr Lewis-Priest, from Browns Plains, was killed instantly.

His niece was in her child restraint and was unharmed but her legs were dangling in the air with nothing in front of her after the car split in two in what police described as a ‘horrific’ sight.

Robertson fled the scene but was caught by Slacks Creek Police in the early hours of October 13 at a house in Woodridge.

Robertson told investigators he was being treated for depression and alcohol abuse and said he had stopped taking his medication four days before the incident happened.

He was also charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death or grievous bodily harm with excessive speed, leaving the scene of an incident, unlawful use of a motor vehicle and three counts of assault occasioning bodily harm.

Two charges of grievous bodily harm in relation to Mr Brown and Mr Teturia were upgraded to assault occasioning bodily harm.