Thief on spree after jail release

AFTER being released from jail for property offences, a serial thief lasted just two weeks before he began a crime spree that saw him steal a 74-yearold’s car, attempt to break into a school and swipe a woman’s wallet.

Now Curtis Jade Lee Gaulton is back behind bars after the 25-year-old Cunnamulla man pleaded guilty to entering a dwelling and committing an indictable offence, trespass, unlawful use of a motor vehicle and possessing dangerous drugs.

In Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Friday police prosecutor Sergeant Natalie Bugden said Gaulton had been released after serving a five month jail stint for property offences on July 1 this year, however on July 15 was captured on CCTV trespassing on the grounds of Glennie School in Newtown.

A resident at the school reported to police that between 9.30pm and 9.45pm Gaulton entered the school via a gate causing damage while trying to scale a fence.

Sergeant Bugden said Gaulton then went through school property towards houses on the northwest part of the property, opening gates to their backyards and taking a school access card from an unlocked vehicle.

The court was told four days later Gaulton’s spree continued when on July 19 about 6.55pm he entered an unlocked back door of a North Toowoomba property and stole a wallet.

Between 12pm of July 18 and 3am of July 19 the spree continued when Gaulton broke into the Toowoomba property of a 74-year-old man and his wife where he stole a Hyundai Tucson as well as an iPad, purse and mobile phone.

The court was told that about 2.30pm the following day police attended a Wilsonton address after getting a tipoff from a witness that a stolen car was parked in the garage.

Gaulton and two others were found at the house, and the stolen 74-year-old’s Hyundai Tucson was found as well as the wallet, iPad and other items.

Two days after he was arrested and taken into custody two small bags of methylamphetamine were found in the toilet of a holding cell when a search was conducted after he had been moved.

Sergeant Bugden said Gaulton had a “quite appalling history for like offending”, noting that he had just served a prison sentence for property offences.

Gaulton’s solicitor Michael Corbin said there was “little option available to the court” other than jailing his client due to his repeat offending which was a result of his “difficult and inability to stay away from the drug ice”.

“He accepts there is no alternative but to be sentenced to jail and it’s up to him how he moves forward at this point in time,” Mr Corbin said, submitting that Gaulton was planning to return to Cunnamulla to play footy and enter rehab.

Mr Corbin said his client was a father of two, and despite leaving school at Year 7 without the ability to read or write did have a good work history of mustering and catching bulls.

Magistrate Graham Lee convicted Gaulton and sentenced him to 18 months behind bars, setting a parole release date of January 4, 2022.