Justin Nisbet pleaded guilty to attempted robbery at Foodworks

Just weeks after his “breathtakingly bold” theft of 91 gold chains from a Queensland jewellery store, a former fisherman who’d “lost” his Centrelink payments was holding up a supermarket armed with a knife.

Justin Nisbet pleaded guilty to entering a premises and committing an indictable offence and attempted robbery when he faced Maryborough District Court on Wednesday.

A former fisherman who forced a still-traumatised jewellery store worker to hand over more than 90 gold chains and terrorised a teen supermarket worker with a knife, has been sentenced.

Justin Nisbet pleaded guilty in Maryborough District Court on Wednesday to entering a premise and committing an indictable offence and attempted robbery.

The court heard Nisbet went into Prouds Jewellers in Maryborough on June 10, 2023, and directed one of the employees to fill a bag.

The employee complied and Nisbet left with 91 assorted gold chains worth a cost price of about $31,000.

When he was arrested two months later, 50 of the gold chains were located.

In a separate incident in Maryborough on July 31, 2023, Nisbet entered Foodworks wearing gloves, a hood over his head and mask and sunglasses covering his face.

He was armed with a knife and had a duffel bag, when he asked the teenage employee who was working to hand over money.

Another employee stepped in and Nisbet left empty-handed.

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The court heard Nisbet had worked in the fishing industry since he left school but broke his hand at work and started running out of money.

He was living with his parents but had to pay rent and didn’t have money to pay them and out of “shame” he left and started couch-surfing.

He also lost the Centrelink payment he was receiving, and it was around that time the offending happened.

While in custody, Nisbet had completed a substance intervention course, the court heard and also engaged with studies through distance education.

His parents were supportive, and he had work he could return to “quite quickly”, the court heard.

Judge Leanne Clare said Nisbet’s robbery of the jewellery store had not been a sophisticated offence.

“But it was breathtakingly bold,” she said.

“You didn’t have a getaway car. There was no direct threat.”

“But you obviously had a menacing manner. There was no weapon.

Just weeks after stealing 91 gold chains from a jewellery store, a Maryborough man used a knife to attempt to hold up a teenage employee at a Foodworks supermarket, a court has heard.

Nisbet had produced a bag and made demands about the gold jewellery on display before taking off on a bike, the court heard.

Days later he was taken into custody for other matters and Nisbet was in custody for five weeks, Judge Clare said.

“Less than two weeks after your release, you tried to rob the Foodworks,” she said.

“This time you armed yourself with a knife and a worker that you targeted was still a child.

“You demanded money from the till but before the boy could give it to you, another employee foiled the robbery by grabbing the cash draw, stepping away and pressing the alarm.

“Fortunately you did not attempt to press the matter further.

“In the process of the scuffle you had tried to grab some loose money, but fled with nothing.”

Judge Clare said that before the work injury, Nisbet had been “making a go of it”.

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She said he had used his time in prison productively to engage in drug rehabilitation and other courses.

She also said there were hopeful prospects for Nisbet upon his release, but the offending had been serious and inherently traumatic for the victims and asked him to read a letter written by the Prouds worker from whom he’d stolen the jewellery.

Nisbet wiped away tears as he read the woman’s letter.

Judge Clare said the woman still had panic attacks and still felt constant fear as a result of the incident.

“Some people remain traumatised for the rest of their lives after a robbery,” she said.

“I can see that you actually are affected by reading that, and that again is another positive sign for you.

“But I want you to always remember who what you do can affect other people.”

Nisbet was given a head sentence of four years in prison.

The time he had spent in pre-sentence custody, 183 days, was declared as time served.

A parole release date was set for July 29, 2024.