He found a rapist ice-addict in his daughter’s bedroom at 3am. After a struggle, the criminal died

Ben Batterham, 35, found Ricky Slater, 34, at his Newcastle home in March 2016

A father who was cleared of murdering a convicted rapist he found lurking in his newborn daughter’s bedroom has opened up on the night that turned his world upside down.  

Ben Batterham, 35, discovered Ricky Slater, 34, at his home at Newcastle, north of Sydney, in March 2016 before chasing him outside, putting him in a chokehold and punching him until police arrived.  

Mr Batterham spent two months behind bars before he was found not guilty of the murder and manslaughter of Slater, who died in hospital a day after the struggle. 

In his first in-depth interview since the incident, Mr Batterham told 60 Minutes he did what ‘any father would have done’. 

‘This could happen to anyone. It could happen to you, it could happen to me,’ he said.    

Monique Batterham told her husband: ‘I don’t think it’s your fault that we had to go through it, at all’

Mr Batterham was celebrating his 33rd birthday with a friend when he saw Slater walk out of his three-month-old daughter’s bedroom at around 3am. 

The pair ‘locked eyes’ before Mr Batterham chased the invader out of the house.

‘My head was doing backflips… I was very upset. It’s my castle, people should always defend their homes,’ he said. 

As Mr Batterham chased the intruder down the street, he fell and hit his face on the concrete. 

A passer by offered him a phone to call police.

‘I’ve just been robbed,’ Batterham could be heard saying in a recording of the Triple-0 call he made that night.

‘I’ve chased a guy down the street and I’ve tripped over and I’ve smashed my mouth.’

Hiding in bushes, Slater was close enough to hear the call and made a run for it, with Mr Batterham following behind while on the phone to the Triple-0 operator. 

Ricky Slater, who lost consciousness during a struggle following the home invasion, died after suffering a lack of oxygen to the brain

Richard James Slater’s mother, Beryl Dickson, said the 34-year-old ‘had a problem’ with ice and confirmed a photograph of a man smoking from a lit pipe was her son (pictured)

‘What was he wearing?’ the emergency employee asked, before Mr Batterham started yelling and running after Slater.

‘Where are you?’ the operator questioned, but Mr Batterham had caught up to Slater and pinned him to the ground. 

He put the thief in a chokehold and repeatedly punched him in the head until police arrived. 

Slater – who was found with three knives, cannabis and ice in his bag – died a day later after suffering three heart attacks.

An initial post-mortem examination found the cause of Slater’s death was a lack of oxygen to the brain.

Police alleged Mr Batterham choked the criminal to death. He was released on bail after a petition to free him amassed tens of thousands of signatures.

But the ordeal was far from over.

Batterham and his family (pictured) received death threats and went into hiding

Slater was an Indigenous Australian and his death was falsely labelled a racially-fuelled hate crime by sections of the community. 

Mr Batterham and his family received death threats and were forced into hiding.

‘If I heard a noise I’d jump up in the middle of the night and I’d stand in the house – pitch black,’ Mr Batterham said. 

‘I think some nights I’d stand there for an hour or two almost convincing myself that there was someone in the house at the time.’ 

His PTSD was so severe he began to drink heavily, which breached his bail conditions. 

Mr Batterham was then caught drink driving.

He was jailed for three months and placed in solitary confinement for his own protection. 

An upset Beryl Dixon (right) mother of Ricky Slater is seen leaving Newcastle Court after a not guilty verdict was delivered, in Newcastle, Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Monique Batterham said her husband went through ‘dark stages’, but she never questioned his decision to chase Slater.

‘[Slater] was in my daughter’s room,’ she said.

‘I don’t think it’s your fault that we had to go through it, at all,’ she told her husband.

Their infant daughter spoke her first word while visiting her father in jail. 

What the jury didn’t know: The horrific criminal history of Ricky Slater

– Ricky Slater was convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl in 2007 and received a minimum four-year jail sentence.

– But the jury in Ben Batterham’s trial was never told of his criminal history.

– The teenage girl had been expecting a visit from her boyfriend when she heard a knock at the door of her South Tamworth home.

– She opened the door to find Slater standing pantless on her doorstep.

– Slater had rocked up at the girl’s front door on previous occasions, but this time managed to force his way inside.

– After barging in Slater shut the door, grabbed the girl by the hair, punched her in the back of the head and put his hand over her mouth as she tried to scream. 

– He then raped the girl, threatening to stab her if she didn’t stay quiet. 

– Before the rape he was convicted on numerous occasions on drug, assault, driving and theft offences.

Mr Batterham smiled and nodded to the jury when the not guilty verdict was handed down last November.

Slater’s mother, Beryl Dickson, immediately walked out of the courtroom.

‘My son was choked by that bastard… look over your back for the rest of your f**king life, you f**king c**t,’ she screamed outside court. 

Defence lawyers insisted throughout the trial that Mr Batterham never intended to kill Slater or cause him serious harm.

They said Slater had a lethal level of meth in his system and that was the true cause of his death.

Forensic toxicologist and pharmacologist Dr Michael Kennedy argued Slater suffered a heart attack due to the high level of meth in his system and his existing heart condition. 

Slater’s mother Beryl Dixon kisses her son goodbye before his life support was turned off

‘My son was choked by that bastard… look over your back for the rest of your f**king life, you f**king c**t,’ Slater’s mother screamed outside court

NSW’s top forensic pathologist Johan Duflou testified that research showed levels of 0.54 milligrams per litre was shown to cause death.

However, he said Slater’s death could not be solely blamed on his drug toxicity and there were other factors in play. 

‘I would include methamphetamine toxicity, I would include the fact that the deceased was held in a face down, prone restraint position, and if there was neck compression,’ he told the court.  

Prosecutor Wayne Creasey told the court off-duty policeman Peter Mahon saw Mr Batterham punch Slater a number of times to the head when he was on top of him, pinning him to the ground with his left arm around his neck.

Mr Batterham was telling Slater: ‘You motherf**king piece of s**t. How dare you break into my daughter’s bedroom. She’s only seven months old.’

His partner and baby daughter were not at home when Slater broke in.

When Mr Mahon told Mr Batterham to let Slater go, the chef said: ‘No, he will try to run.’

Mr Creasey said when Mr Batterham did eventually relax his grip, Slater bit him on the hand.

Mr Batterham was bitten twice, had his tooth chipped and cheekbone injured during the struggle.

Benjamin Batterham ,centre, is seen leaving Newcastle Court after a not guilty verdict was delivered, in Newcastle, Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Mr Batterham was bitten twice, had his tooth chipped and cheekbone injured during the struggle with Slater on Cleary Street, Newcastle

Mr Batterham, like most accused murderers, did not testify in his own case but wrote a letter to the jury that was read out in court.

‘I never intended to cause Mr Slater any serious harm. I wanted to apprehend him and get back was stolen,’ he wrote.

‘I admit I was angry and I hit him, but I was only trying to keep him from getting away. He was constantly struggling and fighting, he bit me on the right arm.

‘All I wanted was for him was to stop.’ 

Former judge Anthony Whealy told 60 Minutes the case should never have gone to trial. 

The prosecution tried to prove Batterham set out to kill Slater, but the case collapsed due under the weight of medical evidence. 

‘Nothing he did contributed to the death,’ Mr Whealy said.

‘This man was on methamphetamine, he was overweight, he was very unfit and he had been forced to run more than 500 metres at top speed, and his heart just gave out.’

Even judge Desmond Fagan, who presided over the case, believed Mr Batterham shouldn’t have gone to trial.  

‘The decision to charge Mr Batterham would have been unreasonable even if the prosecution had been in possession of only the evidence that had emerged by the end of the committal,’ Mr Fagan said.

‘The charge should have been withdrawn.’ 

The director of public prosecutions refused to be interviewed by 60 Minutes.  

In December Batterham was awarded compensation for money spent on his defence.

The sum was reported to be about $1 million.     
 
  

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