Prison escapee John Killick pleads guilty to rug fraud at Downing Centre
John Killick will be forever associated with his audacious helicopter escape from prison. The 77-year-old is back in trouble with the law after pleading guilty to an offence in court on Tuesday morning.
Central Sydney
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Infamous prison escapee John Reginald Killick has pleaded guilty to goods in custody over a rug found in his north Sydney home last year.
Killick, 77, was facing several fraud charges at Downing Centre Local Court including dishonestly obtaining the rug, a De Longhi heater and a chess set following his arrest in October 2018.
However, prosecutors have now dropped the majority of charges after Killick admitted to being in possession of the rug purchased with a fraudulent credit card on June 26, 2018.
The Milsons Point man shot to international infamy in 1999 when his former partner Lucy Dudko hijacked a helicopter at gunpoint to whisk him away from Silverwater Prison in Sydney’s west.
He and his Russian girlfriend spent 45 days on the run before police caught up with the pair. Killick spent a further 15 years behind bars before being released on parole in 2014.
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According to agreed police facts, Killick was captured on CCTV attending Deco Rug Alexandria on June 26, 2018, with Dean Ryan — who has pleaded guilty to being part of a syndicate that created numerous fraudulent bank accounts and bank cards.
Ryan was seen to pay for the rug before Killick picked up the item from the back of the store.
When police raided his home on September 13, 2018 they found the rug and the clothes and shoes Killick was seen to be wearing in the CCTV footage, the facts state.
Killick and Ryan befriended each other during respective stints in prison, the facts state.
In a police interview on October 2, 2018 Killick admitted to possessing the rug but initially said he believed it had been given to him as a gift by Ryan.
Text messages tendered as evidence in court show a conversation between Ryan and Killick on June 25, 2018, where Killick was shown to have said: “Just tell me where to go”.
“Just come to Mascot, we’ll go from there,” Ryan replied.
“So we can get it all, like the carpet,” Killick sent back.
Ryan replied: “As long as they got it Johnny, we’ll get it.”
The rug has been in police custody since Killick’s arrest on October 2 last year.
In court today his bail was dispensed with and lawyer Jeff Chan asked Magistrate J Milledge for the agreed facts to be held under a non-publication order.
Ms Milledge denied the application with a blunt message to the accused.
“I think you’re out there Mr Killick,” she said.
The matter will return for sentence in November.