Rana Elasmar tells a court she just wanted to protect her baby when Stipe 'Stephen' Lozina launched an unprovoked attack on her as she sat in a Western Sydney cafe.
A pregnant woman who was attacked by a stranger in a Western Sydney cafe last year has told a court she was targeted because she was wearing a hijab.Lozina was charged with assault and affray and represented himself in courtSecurity camera footage of the assault shows 44-year-old Stipe "Stephen" Lozina walk into the Parramatta cafe and speak to Rana Elasmar briefly.
"I made a conscious decision to turn my abdomen away from his punches, I wanted to protect my baby," she said.She said the next few days before her child was born were a rollercoaster because she could not feel the baby moving. In sentencing submissions, the prosecution argued the attack was inspired by Islamophobia and a belief that someone of the same religion as Ms Elasmar had wronged Mr Lozina's mother.Ms Elasmar said not only was she physically injured but the psychological impacts felt by herself and her young children would be long lasting.Mr Lozina appeared in the proceedings from custody via video link after insisting on representing himself throughout, declining to use Legal Aid.
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