Police have arrested a man who spent almost a month at large while he awaited trial for allegedly stabbing a driver in the chest and attempting to carjack an Uber.
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William James Bowman, 22, on Saturday faced the ACT Magistrates Court after being initially arrested in April 2022 for the alleged offences.
He was previously committed to face trial in the ACT Supreme Court after pleading not guilty to charges, including two counts of attempted aggravated robbery and one of intentionally wounding a person.
The Oxley man was granted bail in January to live with his sister and terminally ill father.
However, a warrant was issued for his arrest and bail was revoked after he failed to appear in court on April 4 as part of his bail conditions.
Bowman was at large in the community since that date before being arrested by police on Friday.
He now faces a fresh charge of failing to appear in court.
The alleged offender is accused of attacking an Uber driver outside the Abode Hotel in Phillip last year, while the man sat in his white Toyota Camry with a female passenger in the back seat.
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Bowman allegedly opened the front passenger seat door, demanding the keys to the vehicle and attempting to punch the driver.
The driver turned the engine off and ran out of the car, away from Bowman, who was allegedly chasing him while holding a hunting knife, towards the Hellenic Club.
Bowman then allegedly attacked another man, who was sitting in his Skoda Kamiq car in the Hellenic Club car park.
The 21-year-old allegedly opened the driver's side door while the driver tried holding him back from entering the car and "pleaded with him, telling him he had not done anything wrong".
During the altercation, Bowman allegedly stabbed the driver in the right side of his chest.
Police claim they found Bowman lying next to a tree, unresponsive, in the carpark a short time later.
Despite the serious charges, Chief Justice Lucy McCallum granted the man bail in January.
"[If granted bail, Bowman] will be kept very busy because he will be caring for his father," defence lawyer Edward Chen said at the time.
Bowman's bail was formally opposed and refused on Saturday.
Against the wishes of ACT Correctives Services officers, the man approached and hugged a supporter in the public gallery before leaving the court.
He is set to return to the ACT Supreme Court and the ACT Magistrates Court next on Tuesday.
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Tim Piccione
Tim is a journalist with the Canberra Times covering the ACT courts. He came to the nation's capital via the Daily Advertiser in Wagga. Contact: tim.piccione@canberratimes.com.au.
Tim is a journalist with the Canberra Times covering the ACT courts. He came to the nation's capital via the Daily Advertiser in Wagga. Contact: tim.piccione@canberratimes.com.au.
