Brendan David Beetham, 25, drove a stolen car twice at a motorcycle police officer during his four-month crime spree

A young man who tried to run over a motorcycle police officer at Ipswich twice and crashed two stolen cars while evading police has faced Rockhampton court on 30 charges. See his shocking criminal history

A young man who caused more than $25,000 damage to vehicles in a police impound site, tried to run over a motorcycle police officer twice, crashed two stolen cars while evading police and drove into oncoming traffic on a busy windy road at night without headlights.

He has now been disqualified from driving for more than 20 years.

Brendan David Beetham, 25, had a nine-page criminal record and nine-page traffic record with five convictions for dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and nine unlawful use of a motor vehicle before appearing in Rockhampton Magistrates Court on January 14.

He had been disqualified from driving for five years in the Ipswich Magistrates Court on June 21, 2019.

Beetham pleaded guilty last week in Rockhampton to 30 charges including three dangerous operation of a motor vehicle charges, wilful damage, unlawful use of a motor vehicle, evade police, disqualified driving, driving an unregistered vehicle, driving an uninsured vehicle, break and enter and receiving tainted property.

Police prosecutor Courtney Brown said the first dangerous operation of a motor vehicle offence Beethem was being sentenced for last week took place on October 24, 2020.

She said police observed a silver Mitsubishi Outlander on the Ipswich Motorway at Redbank Plains about 12.50am with no rear registration plates, and they followed it until the Outlander was doing speeds of 140-150km/h.

Ms Brown said police next observed the vehicle Pine Mountain Road exit heading back towards the motorway.

Brendan David Beetham, 25.

Police proceeded only 50m along the road, located the vehicle again with the defendant outside of it.

Police slowly approached, however the defendant re-entered the driver’s side, drove over the next crescent before stopping again.

Ms Brown said Beetham put the vehicle in reverse and started reversing at the police who had to reverse at the same time to avoid a collision.

Ms Brown said Beetham then drove forwards, on the wrong side of the road on Pine Mountain Road, turned off the headlights and crossed double white lines.

“The section of road is extremely dangerous,” she said.

“It’s windy (with) the inability to see traffic coming in the opposite direction.”

Ms Brown said police ceased following the vehicle with the Outlander continuing driving in a dangerous manner.

She said when police came across the vehicle again, they again followed it, observing Beetham turning his lights on and off, and driving in a dangerous and erratic manner.

Ms Brown said the Outlander lost control on a right-hand bend, hit a tree and then rolled on its left side.

She said police found the crashed vehicle, with Beetham nearby, at 1.06am, but Beetham ran from police.

He was arrested after he was surrounded.

The Outlander had a false plate on the front which Beetham told police was stolen by a friend who gave it to him.

Ms Brown said police came across Beetham again on December 19, 2020.

This time he was driving a white Mitsubishi Triton with false plates and it was parked outside a Lowood, near Ipswich, residence at 4.10pm.

Ms Brown said police observed Betheem, who was a wanted person, and conducted a U-turn at the end of the street.

She said Beetham then jumped into the ute, sped down the street and upon seeing a second police car stationary at an intersection, swerved towards that second car.

“Police in the vehicle thought they were going to be rammed,” Ms Brown said.

However, Beetham pulled away and drove off at speed, making no attempt to stop after police activated lights and sirens.

Ms Brown said Beetham was observed swerving onto the opposite side of the road, speeding “well in excess of the 50km/h speed limit”.

She said police ceased chasing Beetham, pulling off to the side of the road and observed Beetham driving along another street on the wrong side of the road and drive through an intersection – James and Walter Streets which is the busiest intersection of the township – colliding which a vehicle in the intersection before driving into a car park.

Beetham then collided head-on into another motorist on Railway Street.

Ms Brown said Beetham decamped on foot after the head-on crash.

The Triton’s registration had been cancelled on January 15, 2020.

Beetham conducted a fuel drive-off in Ipswich on January 2, 2021, and was spotted reversing out of a petrol station on the corner of Railway and Main Streets the next night at 8.10pm at Lowood, stopping in the middle of an intersection while a second person ran towards the vehicle – a Toyota Hilux dual cab.

The Hilux drove off, made many sharp turns and police stopped following the Hilux near the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail after lights and sirens were activated and it became clear the Hilux was evading police.

Beetham was captured on CCTV entering a black Ford Ranger which had been parked in a police impound – Harvey’s Towing in Churchill – on January 18, 2021.

Beetham used the Ranger to reverse ram an inner gate, damaging a corrugated fence and a panel was thrown several metres.

He continued reversing, causing damage to the front fence, damaging the gate and causing the fence to be completely knocked over.

Beetham conducted a search of the Ranger, going off to get a silver Volkswagen hatchback to use the headlights of to see during his search.

The Ranger had a flat tyre and sustained damage to the rear, while a white BMW sedan was significantly damaged on its right side.

Police, during investigations, found a red Holden Commodore ute in the yard with its bonnet and driver’s door open, along with a wire fence cut by offenders to access the yard.

Beetham drove the Ranger down a street before re-entering the towing yard at the back.

Beetham then entered a black Mazda CX9 station wagon and drove out towards Toowoomba Road and about 10.20am, he was spotted driving that stolen vehicle at high speed at Leichhardt, in Ipswich.

Beetham was found at a Brassall petrol station by police that morning about to pump petrol into a car and he drove off without paying.

Ms Brown said a motorcycle police officer was following the stolen vehicle through Brassall, approached a slight bend in the road and was forced to take evasive action, removing his motorcycle from the road, to avoid being struck by the stolen car.

She said the stolen car crossed over into oncoming traffic and its tyres screeched as it passed the motorcycle.

Ms Brown said the police officer conducted a U-turn to follow the stolen vehicle and it changed course to travel back towards the police officer on the motorbike.

She said the police officer removed the bike from the road and positioned himself as close to a retaining wall as possible.

Ms Brown said the stolen vehicle’s speed increased, left the roadway, and mounted the nature strip in close proximity of the police officer on the motorcycle.

“The defendant is simply lucky he hasn’t killed someone with his dangerous operation of motor vehicles,” she said.

Ms Brown said the engine was revved loudly before the vehicle struck a garbage bin and left the scene at speed.

Beetham also stole $592.25 of tape and spray paint cans from a Mitre 10 store at Fernvale with the help of a co-offender on January 18, 2021.

Defence lawyer Brian McGowran said his client left school after Year 10 and hung with drug users.

Rockhampton lawyer Brian McGowran leaving Rockhampton courthouse. File image

He said Beetham watched his brother die by drowning and his uncle die by hanging, which led to him being diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder.

Mr McGowran said his client needed to deal with these traumas rather than use drugs and had been medication compliant while in custody awaiting sentencing.

He said when Beetham was not in prison, which he had been in and out of since turning 18, he had employment.

Magistrate Philippa Beckinsale said Beetham was lucky he did not injure himself or others.

“You have put other road users at great risk,” she said.

Ms Beckinsale sentenced Beetham, who was on parole at the time of the offending, to two years prison with immediate parole eligibility.

She also hand down many driving disqualification periods, totaling 16.5 years, which are cumulative on his 2019 five-year disqualification period.

Ms Beckinsale did not order Beetham to pay the $25,870.51 damage bill from the towing yard, stating there was “no utility to order the large amount as (Beetham) will never be able to pay it”.

She did order he pay the restitution for the stolen Mitre 10 items and fuel drive-offs.