A drug-affected man who forced entry into a Ballan bottle store a week before Christmas and has been jailed for six months.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Andrew Wilson was on a community corrections order when he forced open the door to the Thirsty Camel Bottle Shop and smashed a glass panel at 4.40am on December 17.
He was with three others when they allegedly ransacked the store and left with a number of items.
Police arrested Wilson about 6am when he was found hiding in a paddock after being stabbed with a screwdriver by offenders known to him.
Paramedics who treated Wilson said he was heavily drug affected.
Police found the car captured on CCTV leaving the bottle shop nearby and matched Wilson's clothes to those in the footage of the burglary.
Wilson was found in possession of a small quantity of methamphetamine and $200 cash believed to be the proceeds of crime.
He accepted a sentence indication and pleaded guilty to burglary, theft, possessing methamphetamine and dealing with property suspected to be the proceeds of crime at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Thursday.
Magistrate Noreen Toohey told Wilson he had life goals and now was the time to follow them up.
"Clearly drugs are running your life and until you deal with them, you are just going to keep coming back to the court," Ms Toohey said.
"If you don't become a role model for (your son) it will be too late."
Wilson's community corrections order was varied and he was placed on an 18-month order which requires him to undergo drug treatment and rehabilitation, supervision and judicial monitoring.
The prosecution made an application to destroy Wilson's clothing and a headlight used in the burglary but the magistrate refused the application. Ms Toohey said she had never heard of such an application.
Wilson has served 74 days of his six month sentence by pre-sentence detention. If he did not plead guilty, he would have been sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment according to the magistrate.
He ppeared via video link for Thursday's sentencing hearing.
If you are seeing this message you are a loyal digital subscriber to The Courier, as we made this story available only to subscribers. Thank you very much for your support and allowing us to continue telling Ballarat's story. We appreciate your support of journalism in our great city.
