Australian man detained after giving homeless person a beer
A man has claimed he was detained by police after they noticed he gave a beer to a homeless person, who then proceeded to drink the beverage in public.
Zan Maritza, 39, was walking home through Fremantle, south of Perth, on Saturday morning and walked past a homeless man who was sitting on the outskirts of the city’s popular markets.
The Fremantle consultant told Yahoo News Australia the homeless man first asked for some money, then noticed he was carrying a six pack of Victoria Bitter, so asked for a beer.
“I was like, ‘yeah sure’ and I passed him one, but then he opened it and the police drove by and stopped,” Mr Maritza said.
He claimed police then took him back to the police station, where he said he was kept for two hours.
Mr Maritza said officers told him it was wrong that he “encouraged bad behaviour of a homeless man drinking in public”.
Street drinking is banned on any public road or street in Western Australia.
Mr Maritza claimed he told officers he would pursue the matter in court, as he believed he wasn’t in the wrong.
“I was confident I did not do something wrong,” he said.
After being kept for two hours, Mr Maritza said he was released after police told him “don’t do it again”.
Yahoo News Australia has contacted Western Australia Police for comment on the matter.
