Offences began 11 days after release

Police told Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court that a man released from prison last month embarked on a spree of car thefts, pursuits and aggravated burglaries 11 days later.

Jesse Proctor, 21, has been remanded in custody after facing court on Tuesday charged with 74 offences that culminated in a carjacking in Leongatha.

The offences including theft of nine cars, aggravated burglary, carjacking, police pursuits, thefts of petrol and registration plates and driving offences including dangerous driving.

Mr Proctor, formerly of Drouin but currently of no fixed address, made no application for bail.

The charges relate to offences beginning on March 13 at Ellinbank, 11 days after he was released from custody.

Latrobe CIU detective senior constable Joey Kurtschenko told the court Mr Proctor was released from custody on March 2 after serving a term of imprisonment.

Det sen const Kurtschenko outlined a series of incidents that police allege Mr Proctor was involved in, culminating in a theft of petrol in a stolen car and police pursuit in Warragul last Monday morning.

The court heard the Warragul pursuit was the beginning of a series of alleged offences by Mr Proctor, including an attempted carjacking in Leongatha and an aggravated carjacking and sexual assault of a woman in front of her two children.

The court heard Mr Proctor crashed into vehicles in Leongatha, causing the stolen car to burst into flames.

He then threatened to kill a woman during an attempt to steal her car.

In a second carjacking, police said a woman sitting in her car was physically and sexually assaulted by Mr Proctor who put his hand down her top while her one and fouryear-old children were in the car.

Det sen const Kurtschenko said Mr Proctor stole the vehicle, subsequently crashing it after another pursuit.

He then allegedly stole a third vehicle from a rural property at Hedley where he drove through bushland and crashed through multiple fences.

Prior to last Monday’s events, det sen const Kurtschenko outlined a list of offences, allegedly involving Mr Proctor, including thefts of cars beginning at Ellinbank on March 13.

Det sen const Kurtschenko read out a list of offences that police allege occurred daily on the following days until magistrate Simon Zebrowski stopped his summary at March 20.

The charges related to thefts of cars around West Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley, theft of petrol, burntout cars, aggravated burglary and ramming of a police car in Drouin that police allege Mr Proctor was involved in.

Police said there was forensic evidence in almost all of these vehicles that linked Mr Proctor to the offences.

Mr Zebrowski granted police a request to obtain forensic sampling from Mr Proctor, by way of a mouth swab.

Police submitted there were DNA samples in several of the stolen cars but Mr Proctor had refused the procedure.

Mr Zebrowski also made provision for Mr Proctor to see a medical practitioner after hearing he was at risk of withdrawing from a drug addiction and had been complaining of head and chest soreness.

Mr Proctor has been remanded in custody until a committal mention on July 12.