Cassidy Hynes fronts court, accused of carpark thefts

A North Geelong man accused of repeatedly burgling a Geelong apartment complex’s underground carpark also allegedly drove at a security guard, who had to dive out of the way.

March 2015, Geelong Generic file shots of land marks around the city of Geelong Victoria.Geelong Magistrates CourtPicture: Mitch Bear

A North Geelong man accused of repeatedly burgling a central Geelong apartment complex’s underground carpark says it wasn’t him.

Cassidy Hynes, 29, fronted Geelong Magistrates Court on Monday via videolink from prison, facing a number of separate matters and charges including theft, drug possession and theft of a motor vehicle.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Stephanie Drake alleged Mr Hynes repeatedly burgled the underground carpark of an apartment complex on Bellerine St in September last year.

On one occasion, Mr Hynes is alleged to have used a remote to open the roller door.

Inside, Mr Hynes and a female co-accused broke into storage containers.

The court heard a white ute was captured on CCTV entering the carpark with an empty tray, leaving with “multiple boxes” on it.

Constable Drake said Mr Hynes had been identified in the footage through his tattoos, lip piercing and the jacket he was wearing.

On September 9, he allegedly returned, this time in a stolen black Holden Commodore with a “distinctive” sticker.

Constable Drake told the court Mr Hynes could be identified by his Nike tracksuit pants.

Mr Hynes was arrested on September 23 following another alleged incident, in which he was allegedly seen getting out of the stolen Commodore, and later threw a bottle of GHB at police.

On September 26, Hynes and a co-accused woman allegedly entered the carpark in her silver Nissan Pulsar, along with two unknown men.

Mr Hynes donned fluoro gloves, Constable Drake said, and attempted to cover his face but “you can see his dreadlocks”.

Mr Hynes is accused of walking up to a Holden Commodore and using a Stanley knife and screwdrivers to tamper with it and open it up.

The car alarm went off, but was quickly disengaged, Constable Drake said.

Meanwhile, the court heard the female co-accused was breaking into storage containers before being joined by Mr Hynes.

Mr Hynes allegedly drove the stolen Holden out of the parking garage.

Constable Drake told the court the co-accused placed herself and Mr Hynes at the scene, and the prosecution would seek to call her as a witness at a contested hearing.

Mr Hynes allegedly returned to the carpark in the stolen Holden and committed more thefts on September 29, along with an unknown female co-accused.

At 3.35am, a security guard noticed the car, and the thieves allegedly hopped back in, before Mr Hynes allegedly drove at the guard.

The man took “evasive action” the court heard, and Mr Hynes allegedly drove over the exact spot he had just been standing.

The incident was captured on CCTV, which allegedly showed the Holden Commodore leaving with two stolen surfboards on top.

On October 3, police allegedly found stolen good after raiding the known female co-accused’s house in Waurn Ponds and Mr Hynes’ address in North Geelong.

Identity was the key issue at play in relation to the burglaries, Mr Hynes’ lawyer told the court.

His lawyer said there were “strands and threads” of weakness in the police case, which was “largely based on one witness”, and some of the charges lacked “particularisation”.

Mr Hynes will reappear in court on March 25.

Originally published as Cassidy Hynes fronts court, accused of carpark thefts