Gary Morgan: Lightning Ridge man raids opal mining camp
A man jailed for stealing opal specimens and intimidating elderly business operators who wouldn‘t give him money has been back in court in a bid to get a softer sentence.
Dubbo News
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A Lightning Ridge man has dropped an appeal against a nine-month prison sentence he was given for stealing opal specimens and intimidating an elderly business owner in the town.
In May last year Gary Wayne Morgan, 35, was caught on camera breaking into a house located on an opal mining camp.
Morgan ransacked the house, stole $200 worth of opal specimens and caused $300 damage to a display cabinet.
Police found Morgan’s fingerprints on a sliding door at the home and charged him with one count of break and enter which he pleaded guilty to.
While on bail for that offence, Morgan intimidated a 72-year-old man and 57-year-old woman at the iconic Amigo’s Castle tourist attraction because his demands for money weren’t met.
According to court documents, Morgan went to Amigo’s Castle on June 21 and hassled the elderly man for money until he handed over $50.
A day later Morgan went back to the business and was told by the woman that he was not supposed to be there.
In response Morgan got in the woman’s face and verbally abused her.
“You want to watch your back c**t, I’m going to get my aunty to bash you,” Morgan told the woman.
“I hate you, you are a piece of s***.”
When police arrived at the business the elderly man and woman were distressed and shaking because of Morgan’s intimidation.
In court documents tendered to the court, police said Morgan was “a danger to the community” with a “significant criminal history”.
Morgan pleaded guilty to two counts of intimidation and was sentenced in June for those offences and the break and enter.
Magistrate Theresa Hamilton jailed Morgan for nine months and imposed a non-parole period of four months.
After lodging a severity appeal in the Dubbo District Court, Morgan told Judge Nanette Williams he wanted to drop it because he did not have long to wait until he was eligible for parole.