Jamie O’Pray sentenced in Chinchilla Magistrates Court for ‘inside job’ break and enter in Western Downs home

A court was told a man, who had been paroled less than two weeks prior, was ‘enticed’ by the daughter of a victim to break into her father’s home and steal his belongings. See what a magistrate had to say.

Masked thief using lock picker to open locked door from iStock

A Western Downs man, who had recently been given parole, was encouraged by a woman to break into her father’s home and steal tools and personal belongings from his shed and bedroom.

Jamie O’Pray was sentenced in Chinchilla Magistrates Court on December 8 after he broke into the home of a Kaimkillenbun man.

Police prosecutor Chris Hutchins said the 27-year-old broke into the man’s shed between February 28 and March 4 where he stole a ride on lawnmower, and later broke into the same house this time taking jewellery and wireless headphones from the bedroom.

“(O’Pray) knows the victim’s daughter and she procured him to do the offence,” Sergeant Hutchins said.

“It was an inside job essentially.”

Following the break and enter, the court was told police searched the O’Pray’s property where they located model windmills from a Dulacca wind farm estimated at being $2000, power tools believed to be stolen, a bong and clip seal bags with small amounts of marijuana.

Defence lawyer Brad Skuse said his client, who had spent 183 days in pre-sentence custody, accepted the circumstances leading to his client’s offending.

Acting Magistrate Melanie Ho said O’Pray would not be released from jail until February 14 2023 as he was serving a sentence handed down from a Townsville court earlier this year.

“The unusual factor is the victim’s daughter enticed you to do this, that’s very unusual and I don’t hold you fully accountable,” she said.

“It was roughly a period of four months of offending which consists of approximately 13 offences, low level drug offending, drug driving and receiving tainted property.”

O’Pray pleaded guilty to entering a premises to commit an indictable offence, enter a dwelling and committing, driving with relevant drug in saliva, possessing drugs, utensils, two counts of receiving tainted property and a string of vehicle-related offences.

He was sentenced to six months’ jail, suspended for 18 months.

He was also disqualified from driving for two years and three months for driving disqualified and drug driving.