Gympie serial car thief jailed again

TRADITIONAL and more recent police methods came together in the arrest of a serial car thief.

A traccker dog and DNA testig came together to help police catch a Tandur car thief.

TRADITIONAL and more recent police methods came together in the arrest of a serial car thief for unlawfully using a hire car at the Sunshine Coast on May 16.

Jason David Canavan, 25, of Tandur pleaded guilty in Gympie Magistrates Court to unlawfully using a car owned by the firm Thrifty Car Rentals.

Police told the court the car had been stolen on May 5 from Ipswich address of a person who had hired it legitimately, the court was told.

The hirer was away at the time, but a friend had noticed the car missing and called the police.

Then on May 16, Sunshine Coast police had seen one of Canavan’s associates driving the stolen car at Alexandra Headland.

Officers arrested the driver who ran off, only to be found later when a police dog tracked him to a nearby unit.

A forensic examination of the car showed blood on the passenger side door jam and DNA testing showed the blood was Canavan’s.

The court was told Canavan was on parole, but the use of the car predated the offences for which he was jailed and so it therefore would not affect his parole.

Magistrate Chris Callaghan told Canavan his offence had occurred on the same day he was taken into custody for an earlier unlawful use offence, on April 20.

He had been convicted of that offence on June 17 and sentenced to nine months jail and was given parole.

He had also been dealt with for unlawfully using other vehicles on January 17 and between May 2 and 16.

MrCallaghan sentenced him to seven months jail, suspended for 20 months.

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