Illawarra man Joel Bray sentenced for stealing clothes, gas bottle

An Illawarra man has found out his fate for a string of offences including stealing a gas bottle and knocking off more than $1000 in clothing.

Joel Bray learnt his fate in Wollongong Local Court on Tuesday.

An Illawarra man who stole more than $1000 of clothing from a Sydney department store told police he suffered a “brain fart”.

Joel Bray appeared in Wollongong Local Court on Tuesday to be sentenced on a raft of charges relating to two events, including a clothing heist at Myer in Parramatta.

The 39-year-old father previously pleaded guilty to shoplifting a value of less than $2000, larceny, and possessing a prohibited drug.

He also admitted to breaking and entering to commit a serious indictable offence, entering land with the intent to commit an indictable offence and driving with an illicit substance.

Documents tendered in court revealed that Bray was seen using a stolen swipe fob to drive a stolen white Subaru Forester on August 16 into a basement parking lot in Wollongong, where he hopped out of the car and eyed off some bicycles before driving away.

Bray returned to the lower section of the carpark a short time later, where he stopped next to a storage cage belonging to the building‘s strata committee.

Once again, Bray drove off, but he returned about 10 minutes later, jimmied open the cage, and took off with an 8.5kg gas bottle.

Joel Bray broke into a cage to steal a gas bottle.

The incident was captured on CCTV, but when police went to Bray‘s Fairy Meadow address two weeks later, he told them he “had a number of gas bottles”.

Bray was arrested and taken to Wollongong Command, where his partner later brought the stolen gas bottle.

Bray’s partner has not been charged with any wrongdoing.

This incident came three months after police executed a search warrant of Bray’s abode, where they located and seized multiple keys to properties and storage units.

The court documents stated Bray‘s most recent offending took place in Parramatta on the afternoon of Wednesday, November 30, while on bail when he was spotted in Myer trying on clothes over his own clothes before placing them in a trolley.

Joel Bray stole more than $1000 worth of clothing from Myer in Parramatta.

Bray, who had a credit card wedged in his mouth, walked out of the store, however, he didn’t get far before police and the store’s loss prevention officer chased him down and seized 17 items of clothing worth $1336.75.

The man, who was living in Harris Park at the time of this offence, was arrested and taken to Merrylands Police Station where he told officers he had the money to pay for the clothes, but instead of doing so he experienced a “brain fart”.

Police also found 0.2g of a white powered substance which Bray claimed was his cousin‘s before refusing to go into any further detail.

In court on Tuesday, Magistrate Claire Girotto sentenced Bray to 14-months behind bars with a non-parole period of seven months meaning with time already served he could be eligible for release in April, next year.

Upon release, Bray will also be disqualified from driving for three months.