20yo Gympie man convicted of fraud, weapons, drug offences

The man has copped $2700 in fines after stealing a woman’s purse, going on a drunken spending spree and getting busted with weapons and drug paraphernalia

Nate Edmunds

A drunk Gympie man stole a woman’s wallet from her car before using her bank cards to go on a spending spree.

Nate Michael Edmunds, 20, pleaded guilty in Gympie Magistrates Court on December 7 to six charges of fraud and three charges related to possessing knuckle dusters and a glass pipe.

On August 19, a woman reported her purse stolen from her car between 9am on August 16 and 12am on August 17.

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Police prosecutor Michelle Campbell told the court the woman parked her car at the rear of a Gympie fish and chip shop.

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“[She was] not aware that her purse had been stolen until she received a phone call in relation to her purse being located,” Sgt Campbell said.

“She stated she had four bank cards in her purse.”

Sgt Campbell said police conducted checks with Gympie taxi services and identified a booking made by Edmunds that matched the date and amount taken from the victim’s card.

They also found a card was used at Hungry Jacks and CCTV footage showed the taxi going through the drive-through, she said.

Edmunds was drunk at the time and had consumed a large amount of Valium, causing him to black out.

Nate Edmunds

“He doesn’t recall any of the cab rides, however, he does recall driving through a Hungry Jack’s drive through at some point,” Sgt Campbell said.

The court heard the total amount charged to the Bendigo Bank card was $134.89 and the ANZ bank card was $36.54.

The knuckle dusters were found in a car Edmunds was travelling in on August 19, in Brisbane.

Edmunds told police he had bought them two months prior. When police then found another set of knuckle dusters while searching the car he declined to comment, the court heard.

Edmunds and his friends sat on the sidewalk while the search was carried out.

Gympie Magistrates Court generic.

“The defendant passed off a glass pipe which had been on his person to one of his associates who has then thrown the item over the bridge,” the police prosecutor said.

“Police immediately placed the defendant in handcuffs and into the police vehicle, police recovered the glass pipe from under the bridge.”

Magistrate Hillan fined Edmunds $1800 for the six fraud offences and order he pay $171.43 restitution.

For the offences relating to the possession of two weapons and a pipe, Edmunds was fined $900 and the property was forfeited. No conviction was recorded.

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