Jonah Russette Peter Mitchell: Jailed for attacking ex-girlfriend and setting her car on fire in jealous rage

A man who set his ex-girlfriend’s car on fire after splitting her head open and kicking her on the ground has been jailed. Jonah Russette Peter Mitchell was jailed for 4½ years for assault and arson charges in Kalgoorlie District Court last week. The 24-year-old saw his ex-girlfriend pull over to speak to someone on the side of the road on September 15, 2023, and took the opportunity to jump in the passenger seat. The victim told him to get out and tried pushing him out of the car, but he punched her in the face and began punching the windscreen of the car. Fearing for her safety, the woman drove Mitchell to an address he demanded, but on arrival Mitchell took the car keys and threw them over the neighbour’s fence. While she looked for the keys, Mitchell used a frying pan or small car battery to smash the windscreen of the car and said he would “burn it down”. He then turned the object on the victim and hit her in the head, causing her to fall to the ground, where he then kicked her in the back and neck. The blow left a laceration requiring 12 staples to fix. The pair continued to argue most of the night and at 2.40am Mitchell gathered clothes and paper and set them on fire inside the car, completely destroying the car, her phone and other personal belongings. The prosecutor in the District Court said Mitchell’s offending was triggered by jealousy and that he wanted to “bash her up a bit” because she had been drinking with her friends and he did not want her “sl...ing around”. The prosecutor also told the court Mitchell had admitted he had alcohol and drug problems, and he did not want to “at one point black out and kill someone”. Mitchell’s lawyer told the court the couple had since reconciled and had plans to live together after he was released from custody. She said the relationship broke down because of Mitchell’s meth use, but he had cleaned himself up before he was arrested. Judge Michael Bowden said burning the victim’s car was a “calculated” decision made for no reason but to punish her. He granted Mitchell a 25 per cent discount to his sentence for his pleas of guilty, but said the court had an obligation to protect people from “these sorts of violence”. He jailed Mitchell for 4½ years, backdated to May 15, and made him eligible for parole after 2½ years.