A man found himself back in the hands of police just 24 hours after he was released from prison because he stole from a woman's car, a court has heard.
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Gabriel Mark Edwards, 41, of Hunters Lane, Lakes Entrance, Victoria pleaded guilty from prison by audio visual link on Thursday, September 21 in Dubbo Local Court to:
- Custody of knife in public place
- Larceny
- Dishonestly obtain financial advantage etc by deception x 3
- Give a false name
- Goods in personal custody suspected being stolen
- Stalk/intimidate intend fear physical etc harm
- Common assault
According to court documents on Friday, July 28, 2023, 24 hours after being released from custody, Edwards was dropped with just his clothes into the main street of Wellington.
It was about 2.30pm when the victim parked the car she was using from her grandfather on the street outside of her home.
Later that day, the victim went to the Wellington Soldiers Club with a friend, and left around 8pm. It was around this time the victim saw her friend speaking with Edwards.
Then, they walked to the Cow and Calf Hotel.
Throughout the night, the victim's friend continued speaking with Edwards, but the victim didn't get involved in the conversation.
At 10.30pm the victim and her friend left the hotel and went to their homes for the night.
According to court documents at 6.30am on Saturday, July 29 the victim woke up to four notifications from the Commonwealth Bank that said she had made early morning transactions worth $65.96, $90.47, $71.99 and $95 at a petrol station in Wellington.
The victim checked her car and noticed her wallet was missing, and that the car had been rummaged through.
The victim contacted the police.
The court documents state the victim reviewed home CCTV footage and saw Edwards entering her car and leaving with a full bag of items, along with the board game Articulate.
The petrol station was also able to provide CCTV footage showing Edwards making the following purchases:
- Winfield tobacco pouch and three tally ho papers worth $65.96
- Dare Mocha, Strawberry Up and Go, Parker and Red Cigarettes, Wee Blue cigars worth $90.47
- Port Royal Original Tobacco pouch and two Bic lighters worth $71.99
- Optus ePay and Telstra prepaid credit worth $95
About 8.30am the police were called to Orana Mall, where Edwards was with a pair of scissors.
Police asked for his details and Edwards gave a fake name and said he had no identification.
According to the court documents police arrested Edwards for possession of the scissors and when he was searched, the police found the victim's items.
Edwards told police the victim was his wife and he was holding onto the wallet for her.
Police found Motul Tyre Repair, Lux deodorant, vehicle mobile phone holder, wireless ear phones, a 20 metre extension chord, lottery tickets and clear safety glasses.
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He was then taken to Dubbo Police Station.
On a separate occasion, on Tuesday, August 1, 2023 Edwards booked into a room at the Federal Hotel in Wellington for two nights.
According to court documents on Wednesday, August 2, Edwards was in the beer garden on the betting machines for a period of time. He did not buy a drink or place a bet while he was there.
Around 10.30pm, Edwards began to hassle other patrons in the beer garden to the point the victim approached him and asked that he go back to his room.
The court documents state Edwards became verbally aggressive towards the victim, threatening to shoot her.
The victim again asked Edwards to leave the beer garden and return to his room.
Edwards then spat in the victim's face, which was witnessed by another patron who broke up the altercation.
The police were called to the scene where they got a version of the incident from the victim.
Edwards was then arrested and taken to Wellington Police Station.
Magistrate Garry Wilson convicted and sentenced Edwards to a 12 month community corrections order.
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