Robert David Castle pleads guilty to stealing, unlawful use of motor vehicle

A Queensland man tried to cut off his ankle monitor and “go on the run” while facing serious charges.

A man who cut off his ankle monitor to try to escape serious charges had his case heard in Kingaroy Magistrates Court.

Robert David Castle, 33, of Maryborough, pleaded guilty to one count each of receiving tainted property, driving a stolen car, wilful damage, stealing, driving without a licence, driving an uninsured vehicle, driving an unregistered vehicle and driving a vehicle with the wrong number plate attached on March 10, 2025.

The court heard police had found Castle and his co-accused in possession of about $20,000 of stolen property, which included television sets, sound bars, electrical appliances and bedding.

He was charged with stealing hubcaps and found to have the keys to a stolen car in his backpack, which was valued at around $38,500.

In addition, Castle had cut off his ankle monitor with the intention to “go on the run”, which resulted in him being taken into custody and charged with wilful damage.

The court heard he was also facing methamphetamine trafficking charges in the higher court, which could result in a lengthy prison sentence.

Senior Sergeant Sophie Stewart said he had an extensive criminal and traffic history, which included stealing offences, being in possession of a stolen firearms and four previous convictions for unlawful use of motor vehicle.

The court heard Castle cut off his ankle monitor with the intention to “go on the run”, which resulted in him being taken into custody and charged with wilful damage. Picture: supplied

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His lawyer, Mark Werner, said while the most serious charge was the unlawful use of a motor vehicle, there was no evidence he actually drove the car.

“He had the keys, he knew where it was, he quite foolishly took a photo of it when the co-accused were hiding it in bushland,” Mr Werner said.

“Mr Castle has assisted the co-accused and come into possession … of the vehicle after the event, but there is nothing to say he was ever actually in the vehicle or had the use of it.”

The court heard one of Castle’s co-accused was his girlfriend at the time, who has also been charged and taken into custody on similar charges.

Mr Werner told the court Castle had limited work history in construction and farm work as he had spent a lot of his adult years in custody.

He said his client had engaged with rehab and counselling programs to deal with his methamphetamine addiction and was planning to re-enter a rehab program once he had served his time.

Mr Werner said he wanted to “reconnect with family fairly badly” and had planned to live with his sister when he gets released.

The court heard Castle had been in custody for almost a year.

Magistrate Andrew Sinclair took his time served into account and sentenced him to 18 months in prison, eligible for parole on March 10, 2025, and fined him $6,737 as restitution for the stolen property he received.

Convictions were recorded.