court
A MAN who allegedly struck a police officer and then escaped from custody at the Ballarat Police Station has appeared in court.
Twenty-one-year-old Grant Kelly appeared briefly in Melbourne Magistrates Court yesterday.
The case was initially listed for a conference between prosecution and defence, but a lack of police prosecutors meant the hearing had to be adjourned.
According to charge sheets obtained by The Courier, Kelly assaulted Detective Senior Constable Rod Stepnell on May 12, 2010, and on the same day escaped from police custody.
Kelly faces 83 charges including multiple assault and dishonesty offences. Among them, police claim that two days before the alleged escape Kelly stole a .22 calibre rifle worth $1000 from a Wendouree property. He is also alleged to have stolen a 2009 Honda Accord in Box Hill worth $40,000.
Kelly spent less than a minute in the dock before being taken back into custody. He is yet to enter a plea.
The hearing was adjourned to November 29 for another case conference.
