A 20-year-old man accused of breaking into a Wendouree house to steal a set of car keys and then the car, has been bailed after new facts and circumstances came to light.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Tristan Scutcheon, 20, fronted the Ballarat Magistrates Court on Friday to apply for bail after he was refused bail on December 6.
The court was told the accused and a co-accused allegedly gained access to a Wendouree house at 5pm on November 29 to steal the car keys from a buffet unit.
Police allege the victim's stolen Suzuki was used in a petrol drive-off and was used to evade police in Wendouree on December 1.
Police prosecutor Leading Senior Constable Clint Prebble said police located the Suzuki on December 5 with number plates that had been tampered with a black marker.
He said Scutcheon was arrested after one gram of green vegetable matter, believed to be cannabis, was found on him.
The court was told he was a disqualified driver.
"The accused must show compelling reasons because he has been charged with indictable offences while on a community corrections order," Leading Senior Constable Prebble said.
Scutcheon's lawyer claimed there was inaccuracies in the remand summary and a co-accused had pleaded guilty to driving offences relating to evading police on December 1.
Magistrate Letizia Torres agreed there had been new facts and circumstances since the first bail application in December.
She released Scutcheon on bail with strict conditions. He will return to court on April 4.
