A nine-year-old girl was allegedly kidnapped from a park by the step-brother of the person who took Cleo Smith before he engaged in indecent behavior with her.
Tuesday morning at Bennett Park in Doubleview in Perth’s northern suburbs, Ashley Bropho, 39, reportedly approached the child and forced her to return to his house, which was 300 meters away.
After they arrived at his house, according to Western Australian police, Bropho encouraged her to act in a sexual manner, leading to her arrest and charging.
Since then, it has come to light that Terence Kelly, who kidnapped four-year-old Cleo Smith in October of last year and caused international headlines, has a stepbrother named Bropho.
Kelly, 36, kidnapped Smith from a camping in Carnarvon and held her hostage for 18 days.
Later, after being apprehended by authorities, he admitted to abducting the four-year-old.
Kelly is presently incarcerated and waiting to be sentenced. In January, he was charged with further offenses for assaulting a police officer.
The connection between Kelly and Bropho was first alluded to on Wednesday during Bropho’s initial court appearance at Perth Magistrate’s Court.
Due to a similar instance involving a cousin, the defendant’s defense attorney requested that the identity of his client be withheld; however, Magistrate Peter Malone rejected the request.
After the kidnapped girl escaped his home, rushed back to Bennett Park, and alerted family members, police detained the 39-year-old.
The female that Bropho is accused of kidnapping was unknown to him.
As part of a community engagement program, Bropho had a caretaker assigned to him who was there during the alleged kidnapping.
One case of kidnapping, two counts of indecently touching a minor under 13, and one count of inciting a youngster to engage in sexual activity are among the many charges that Bropho is facing.
He was placed back into custody and will return to court on July 27.