Intruder had machete at Toowoomba school

A 42-YEAR-OLD man who attempted to break into The Glennie School in Toowoomba in the early hours of the morning had brandished a machete at a security guard who challenged him.

Toowoomba District Court heard the occupants of the school’s boarding house had heard Charles William Lehman unsuccessfully trying to break into buildings at the Herries St school just after midnight May 22.

A security guard called about the intruder, searched the school grounds and eventually came upon the 42year-old near the boarding house and shone a torch light in his face and asked what he was doing there, Crown prosecutor Alysha Ballantyne told the court.

Lehman had then brandished the machete, which had a wooden handle and 20cm blade, he was carrying and told the security guard: “I’ll stab you if you don’t turn that torch off”, she said.

After calling for back up, the security guard was able to talk the drug affected Lehman into dropping the machete, the court heard.

Police then arrived on scene and arrested him.

Lehman was found to have a small amount of methamphetamine on him at the time, Ms Ballantyne said.

The now 43-year-old was taken into custody and he appeared via video link from the prison to plead guilty to seven offences including threatening violence in the night, attempted to enter The Glennie School buildings, possessing a knife in public, trespassing and breaching a curfew which was a condition of bail arising from unrelated charges.

His barrister Shane MacDonald, instructed by MacDonald Law, told the court his client had some mental health issues and a long-term alcohol problem as well as more recent drug addiction.

His client had little recollection of the events of that night, he said.

His client had spent the ensuing 117 days, or almost four months, in custody since his arrest which was the first time he had been in prison.

Mr MacDonald asked the court to grant his client immediate parole though Lehman would remain in custody until other unrelated matters were dealt with in the Magistrates Court next week.

His client had a bed available for him at a Brisbane rehabilitation centre upon his release from custody, Mr MacDonald said.

Asked if he had anything he wanted to say to the court, Lehman said he had been suffering drug problems and mental health issues at the time and now wanted to “move on” and get his life back together.

He told the court he was a boilermaker by trade but was unemployed at the time because he had been doing volunteer work with Lifeline to pay off his SPER debt.

Judge Tony Rafter SC noted Lehman had a lengthy criminal history and had appeared in the Magistrates Court 13 times though for relatively minor offences.

Judge Rafter declared the 117 days Lehman had spent in pre-sentence custody as time served under the sentence and sentenced him to 12 months in jail but ordered he be released on parole immediately.