A WOMAN arrested in the Hunter after allegedly abducting her intellectually disabled son from outside a school at Culcairn, in the Riverina region, on Tuesday has been refused bail in Newcastle Local Court.
The boy, 12, who is in the care of Family and Community Services, was dropped at school by his carers on Tuesday, but walked off school grounds and was allegedly driven "halfway across the state" by his mother, the court heard.
The boy and his mother were the subject of repeated "amber alerts" on Wednesday after police were notified of his disappearance. While driving from the Riverina to the Hunter, the woman allegedly spoke on the phone with police, admitting the boy was with her but refusing to return him or disclose their location. After more inquiries, the boy and his mother were located in Lake Macquarie about 10pm on Wednesday.
The woman, who cannot be named because it would identify her son, appeared in court on Thursday charged with take or detain a person with intent to obtain advantage.
She did not enter a plea, but her solicitor, Chris Thompson, applied for bail.
The woman had been wanted by police since October 2019 for assault charges, making her bid for bail on Thursday what's called a "show cause matter" and a much more difficult task.
Ultimately, Magistrate Janine Lacy refused the woman bail.
"This is a young and vulnerable person who was removed from the care and protection of his appropriate supervisors and, ultimately, had police not been able to use their resources to locate him it would still be an ongoing situation," she said.
