A man who was caught sitting in a stolen vehicle in Daylesford in the early hours of Thursday morning has been bailed.
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Brandon Celep-Kerr, 25, pleaded guilty to one charge of theft and one charge of committing theft while on bail at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Thursday.
Police prosecutor Senior Constable Ben Jones told the court police received a call at 1.45am on Thursday reporting a suspect vehicle parked on Albert Street in Daylesford.
Police attended and found the accused sitting inside the vehicle that was reported as stolen from a home in Golden Point on January 3 or 4.
He was transported to the Ballarat Police Station and remanded in custody.
A Ballarat defence lawyer said Celep-Kerr was a youthful offender who had an intellectual disability.
"He says he was doing well earlier in the year. He had a long-term relationship with his partner that was going well and has since ended, resulting in him returning to old friends and some illicit substance use," she said.
"It sounds like he needs to re-engage with supports to keep him out of trouble."
The court heard Celep-Kerr would live with his mother and was able to engage in rendering work with his brother who owned a business.
Magistrate Letizia Torres questioned how it could be ensured the offending would not happen again.
The lawyer said while there was some risk, it was a low level risk, as he was not committing the thefts himself.
Celep-Kerr was bailed to be sentenced on February 25.
Bail conditions included Celep-Kerr live at his mother's house and make an appointment to see his general practitioner and disability support worker upon his release.
"I want you to speak to the Salvation Army chaplain about your lifestyle, so you are not hanging around with the wrong people, you are not sitting in stolen cars in the middle of the night and you are not taking drugs, because if you continue in this way you will end up in jail," Ms Torres said.
He will return to court on February 25.