Teen who broke into 89-year-old’s home and demanded car keys cops 10 months detention after facing Childrens Court of Queensland in Toowoomba

Days after he was released from detention, a 17-year-old entered the home of an elderly man and pushed him to the ground, demanding the keys to a vehicle before ransacking the house in a ‘frightening experience’.

A 17-year-old youth who assaulted and tried to rob an 89-year-old man in his own Toowoomba home has been sentenced to 10 months detention.

The solidly-built teenager, who as a juvenile offender cannot be named, already had 12 pages of criminal history that included previous offences of violence, appeared in custody before the Children’s Court of Queensland at Toowoomba on Wednesday to plead guilty to the “frightening” event.

The 89-year-old man was in his home when about 6.30am on May 24, when he saw the youth entering his garage, Crown prosecutor Emily Coley told the court.

The teenager then appeared in the man’s kitchen, and despite being told the youth to get out the teen demanded the keys to the man’s car and repeatedly said “where are the keys”.

As the elderly man tried to usher the lad out of his home, the court was told the teen pushed him over and when the man went to get up, the youth pushed him over again and then ransacked the victim’s home.

However, he then left without the keys and returned to a car waiting outside which then drove away, Ms Coley said.

The car was found outside another residence from which a car was stolen and later crashed and the youth was seen running away, the court heard.

The teen’s fingerprints had been found at the elderly man’s home, Ms Coley said.

Ms Coley said, fortunately, the victim had not suffered any physical history and although he hadn’t provided a victim impact statement, it would have been a “frightening experience for an 89-year-old man”.

Ms Coley said the teenager had only days before been released from detention for other offences.

Defence barrister Jens Streit told the court his client would turn 18 in January after which he would be transferred to adult prison and “in with the big boys”.

Mr Streit said his client had endured a very difficult upbringing and far from going off the rails, “he was never on the rails to start with”.

Mr Streit said his client had already spent five months in custody to think about things.

“There’s a brief light at the end of the tunnel,” he submitted.

However, Judge Bernard Porter KC sentenced the teenager to 10 months detention to serve 70 per cent.

Originally published as Teen who broke into 89-year-old’s home and demanded car keys cops 10 months detention after facing Childrens Court of Queensland in Toowoomba