A Dubbo woman who hid evidence from police, namely car keys and a phone, as well as wrestled an officer during an ongoing investigation, has been convicted and sentenced.
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Tammy Antaw of Margaret Crescent appeared in court on March 1 and pleaded guilty to hiding evidence, perverting the course of justice, and wilfully obstructing an officer in execution of duty.
Police said Antaw aged about 31 or 32 was in contact with an inmate in Wellington Correctional Centre, who is the co-accused in this case. The intelligence branch of Corrective Services noted the inmate had been making a number of calls in custody and admitting involvement in criminal acts.
Each call began with a message telling the inmate and recipient that they would be monitored and recorded. The pair's recorded phone conversations eventually led police to the discovery of evidence and Antaw's arrest.
According to court documents, in one call Antaw and the co-accused discussed the latter's arrest. After the arrest, police tried to look for the inmate's mobile phone which contained evidence on indictable offences.
The court heard during the co-accused's arrest there was a wrestle involving Antaw, and police were assaulted. She was holding the phone at the time which she refused to give to police saying she was the owner of the phone.
Police tried to see the phone to confirm it did not belong to the co-accused and another wrestle ensued between police Antaw and a third person who was present at the time. The person told Antaw to break the phone so police would not be able access it.
Following the phone incident, officers were in pursuit of a blue Holden Commodore on December 18, 2020, and Antaw was seated in the front passenger seat next to a driver. After the pursuit ended, Antaw was arrested.
However, police could not locate the vehicle after the arrest. They found it abandoned in Galloway Drive the next day when it had been partially destroyed by fire. The passenger side of the vehicle was burnt but forensic test results nominated Antaw from DNA found inside the vehicle.
Police said they acquired calls and messages between Antaw, the co-accused and another man about the incident and having the car destroyed.
During Antaw's court appearance, magistrate Aaron Tang told the court the maximum penalty for hiding evidence was seven years imprisonment while perverting the course of justice carried a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail.
"Justice-related offences are serious because they get in the way of justice system," Mr Tang said.
Despite the seriousness of the matters, he told Antaw it was unlikely that she would go to prison as it should be "the last resort". He also spoke of her being referred to the Dubbo Drug Court because she had been living with drug issues.
Mr Tang also noted Antaw's sentence assessment report said she had a medium to low risk of reoffending.
"It says you're willing to engage in alcohol and drug counselling so I found you have reasonably good prospects... and you are on your way to prevention," he said to the offender.
Antaw was sentenced to serve a 12-month community correction order for all offences. For the charge of perverting the course of justice, specifically, she is required to stop associating with the co-accused, do 30 hours of community service, and attend drug rehabilitation treatment.
"You need to stay out of trouble effectively for 12 months otherwise you will be back in court for re-sentencing," Mr Tang said.
