Justine Dawn Smith sentenced to community service for fraud and deception charges

An identity thief’s meth addiction came to a head after she was kidnapped for five days and subjected to horrific acts over a drug debt.

An identity thief who was mixing with a bad crowd was kidnapped and tormented for five days over a drug debt, a court heard.
Justine Dawn Smith, 37, turned her life around after her drug addiction led to a terrifying ordeal.

A prosecutor told the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Friday police found prescription medication, a driver’s licence in another person’s name and a set of keys for a business on Smith in March 2021.

The court heard a woman received an expiation notice in April 2021 for a vehicle she hadn’t hired.

The vehicle had been booked online with the woman’s driver’s licence – the one found in Smith’s possession when she was arrested in March.

Police located Smith at the Mantra hotel in Adelaide on May 5, 2021.

The room was searched and police found several drug items, credit cards and driver's licences.

“A note contained multiple credit card details, CCV numbers and expiry dates,” the prosecutor said.

Police also located a plastic resealable bag of meth inside Smith’s bra.

Justine Smith. Photo: Facebook

Justine Smith. Photo: Facebook

The Bowden mother-of-three pleaded guilty to multiple offences, including deception, identity theft and possessing drugs.

Christos Pouras, for Smith, told the court she was involved in the drug scene at the time of the offending.

The court heard Smith, who was a recreational drug user, descended into “full blown” substance abuse after the death of her mother.

Mr Pouras said Smith began associating with bad people and in January 2021 she was the victim of one of the most “incredible incidents” he’d heard of in his career.

“Ms Smith was assaulted and kidnapped by somebody who thought she owed him a drug debt,” he said.

“She was held against her will for a period of five days.”

The court heard Smith had petrol poured on her, was assaulted with a hammer and had sex acts performed in front of her.

Mr Pouras said Smith didn’t report the incident as she feared retribution.

The court heard Smith, who was now working as a gardener, had cut ties with her drug associates and had been clean for a year.

Magistrate John Wells noted her offending was “relentless” but it wasn’t serious enough to warrant a jail sentence.

“Giving up drugs is not an easy thing and it is something you’ll need to work on everyday,” he said.

“The minute you start to relax is when you’ll find yourself in trouble – you need to remain disciplined.”

Mr Wells convicted Smith and ordered her to complete 70 hours of community service.

She was also fined $140 and disqualified from driving for three years for driving without a licence.