Outrage at attack on respected Bourke citizen

John “Brushy” Keeley at work on the BBQ raising money for another good community cause. Brushy has been released from hospital and is recovering from the attack. Photo TWH

The Bourke community is in a state of shock after one of its most loved residents, and former Citizen of the Year, John ‘Brushy’ Keeley, was seriously injured in a violent attack on Sunday night.

Seventy-one-year-old Brushy was flown to Westmead Hospital suffering serious head injuries after an unprovoked attack in his own home.

Brushy’s Ford Ranger was found burnt out on the corner of Adelaide and Culgoa Streets. Photo Twh

The attack happened about 8.30pm on Sunday, when three males forced entry into his home at the Bourke Shire Council Depot on Anson Street, assaulting him with a golf club and stealing his car.

Brushy – Bourke’s Citizen of the Year in 1991, was alone after having dinner with his sister on Sunday night when the attack occurred.

He was struck in the face with the club, before the group fled with his wallet, car keys and a Ford Ranger, which was found ablaze at the intersection of Adelaide and Culgoa Street about an hour later.

NSW Ambulance paramedics took Brushy to Bourke Hospital before he was airlifted to Westmead Hospital in Sydney for treatment of serious head injuries. It was feared that he might lose sight in one eye because of his injuries.

Going to publication late on Tuesday afternoon, Brushy is recovering well from a large gash over the right eye plus bruising and soreness to the face. […]

Read more in the printed edition of The Western Herald.

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