Escapee in disguise
Wearing makeup to flee state after four days on run
A MAN who escaped custody and went on the run for four days was found wearing makeup as a disguise as he waited to board the Spirit of Tasmania and get out of the state.
Braydon William Stanley, 26, of Irishtown, has pleaded guilty to one count of escape, three counts of stealing, two counts of motor vehicle stealing, one of evade police, one of negligent driving, as well as breaches of bail and family violence orders.
Stanley will be sentenced on Monday.
In the Burnie Magistrates Court yesterday his defence lawyer Adrian Hilly tendered a handwritten letter from Stanley to Magistrate Leanne Topfer and asked that his client be considered for a drug and treatment program rather than more time in custody.
Mr Hilly told the court Stanley had served time in jail before and another term was likely to do little to stem his offending.
The police prosecution outlined Stanley’s crime spree leading up to his arrest on September 23 following the issuing of a warrant after he failed to appear in court.
In the six months before, Stanley had stolen cash from a woman at the Commonwealth Bank in Launceston, a car from Invermay, a Range Rover worth $136,000 from a car wash, clothes from a menswear store in George Town, a motorcycle from Newnham and work boots from Bunnings in Burnie.
The court heard Stanley was violent, kicking the doors of the divisional van, as he was transported by police from Irishtown to the Burnie station.
He continued to act in an agitated manner once there and paced the charge room, being told repeatedly to stay away from the doors.
Stanley then saw an opportunity and escaped the station via a fire door.
He ran, with police in pursuit, to the nearby railways. Stanley dodged police by running between the carriages of a slow-moving train before he jumped into a work vehicle which had its engine running.
He crossed onto the wrong side of the road as he drove towards Upper Burnie, where he dumped the car and fled on foot.
He was arrested at the Spirit of Tasmania terminal in Devonport on September 26.
The court was told he had planned to leave the state and was wearing makeup and had hair dye with him to try to avoid identification.