Teen sentenced for armed robbery at Colinton United Petroleum service station

A teenage boy has been sentenced after a violent armed robbery at the Colinton United service station, where a young woman was held up at knifepoint.

A teenager was sentenced after pleading guilty to an armed robbery at a service station in Colinton in January, 2024.

A teenager, just weeks away from turning 18, has been sentenced after pleading guilty to an armed robbery involving five youths at a service station in Colinton in January.

The young offender, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was on probation at the time of the offence, following previous convictions for robbery.

The Kingaroy Children’s Court was told on the night of January 14, a 23-year-old woman was working at the United Petroleum service station in Colinton when a group of three boys and two girls arrived in two cars, one of which had been stolen.

Judge Jennifer Rosengren said the two girls went in the service station, one of them put some food on the counter and then the other one took some items and walked out without paying.

“While the other girl was paying, two of the boys went in there, they had their faces covered,” Judge Rosengren said.

One of the boys waved a large kitchen knife at the victim, telling her to hand over the money.

“It must have been terrifying for this poor girl,” Judge Rosengren said.

The United Petroleum (Pie Face) service station in Colinton.

Shortly after, the defendant ran in with a T-shirt covering his face before all three boys jumped over the counter.

One of the boys tried to grab the young woman’s phone.

“The other, with the knife, pointed it towards her and told her to open the till,” Judge Rosengren said.

The victim, fearing she would be stabbed, complied as the boys stole money, cigarettes and food items before fleeing.

The entire ordeal lasted two minutes.

Police apprehended the defendant about an hour later in the stolen vehicle, the court was told.

Crown prosecutor Hamish McIntyre said the previous judge had warned the boy if he returned to court for similar offending he was at the risk of having a conviction recorded.

“Despite that warning the child committed these offences … just one month after that sentence,” Mr McIntyre said.

Judge Rosengren acknowledged the boy’s troubled past and the challenges he faced, including a diagnosis of intellectual disability and early exposure to drugs, which he began using at 10 years old.

“Life hasn’t been easy for you, and you’ve also had a fair bit of sadness in your life with the death of a few people who were really close to you,” she said.

Kingaroy Magistrates Court. File Photo.

The court also heard that the boy had served 172 days in detention for an unrelated matter.

However, Judge Rosengren pointed out the progress he had made while in youth justice, noting that he “functions better” with structure.

She also addressed the boy’s family members and members of youth justice, who were present in the courtroom.

“The reason why they’re all here is because they all believe in you,” she said.

Judge Rosengren spoke directly to the boy as his grandmother became emotional and began crying.

“I see your grandma … and you are going to break her heart,” she said.

“So next time you are going to do something like this, I want you to think about her and think about how much you will be hurting her.”

Judge Rosengren decided not to record a conviction, giving the boy what she described as “one last chance” to turn his life around.

She recognised a recorded conviction could hinder his plans to pursue a trade and gain employment.

“You need to understand, if you do this after you turn 18 there will be no question about a conviction being recorded,” she said.

“You will be going straight to jail and you will be serving time in an adult jail.”

The boy was ordered to 344 days in detention to serve 50 per cent (172 days).