Allister O’Mahonys Wallace, 58, pleads guilty to possessing knife, tainted property

A Southern Downs man was busted far from home when a police patrol busted him with a knife and stolen bike in a busy night-life precinct.

Allister O’Mahonys Wallace has faced Warwick Magistrates Court after he was found in Brisbane with a knife and stolen bike.

A Southern Downs man busted in the heart of Brisbane with a knife and stolen bike “should have known” what he was doing was wrong, a court has heard.

Allister O’Mahonys Wallace, 58, pleaded guilty in Warwick Magistrates Court on September 2 to possession of a knife in a public place and possession of tainted property.

The court was told Wallace was spotted by police travelling around the Chinatown mall area in the busy Fortitude Valley nightclub precinct in Brisbane on May 24 of this year.

“A police beat confronted the defendant who searched him and found a knife in his breast pocket,” police prosecutor Sergeant Steve de Lissa said.

“He told police he used it to cut fruit, but did not have any fruit in his possession. He said the mountain bike was given to him by a friend.”

Police examined the serial number of the bike, determining it was stolen property.

Defence lawyer Clare Hine said Wallace “should have known it was stolen” and noted the man had a four page criminal history, but no offending had occurred since 2017.

“You really should have known it was stolen,” magistrate Janice Crawford told the man.

“Your criminal history is not so serious and mainly low-level street offending.”

Concerningly, the magistrate noted Wallace had previously faced court over knife possession in a public place.

Luckily, the mountain bike was able to be reunited with it’s rightful owner following Wallace’s offending.

Wallace was fined $750, with the knife seized and destroyed.

Convictions were recorded.