Dean Fletcher: trespasser at Prime Minister Morrison’s home jailed
A “cocky, arrogant” man who joked he was going to “sh*t” in the Prime Minister’s pool before breaking into the backyard of his private Sydney home has been jailed in a shocking denunciation of his politically motivated prank.
St George Shire Standard
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The man who busted into the Prime Minister’s private backyard and threatened to “sh** in the pool” as part of a politically motivated prank has been jailed.
Dean Fletcher, 33, pleaded guilty to trespassing and inciting a criminal act after he and Caitlin Cooper, 18, entered Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s private backyard in the Sutherland Shire armed with cans of cider on January 3.
Fletcher had organised a joke Facebook event encouraging punters to come and watch the cricket by the pool in protest against Prime Minister Morrison’s response to the devastating summer of bushfires.
On Friday at Sutherland Local Court, Magistrate Jayeann Carney sentenced him to four months’ imprisonment after noting his “cocky, arrogant” attitude.
“The accused showed no remorse and appeared quite proud of his decisions on this day,” Ms Carney read from the police facts.
Fletcher was then granted bail to appeal his sentence in the NSW District Court.
He was also convicted and sentenced to a two-year conditional release order for trespassing, which includes supervision by Wollongong Community Corrections.
After a previous court appearance Fletcher described the incident as a “prank that got out of hand”.
“I regret causing any harm or distress to Mr Morrison and his family and it’s certainly something that with hindsight I wouldn’t do again,” Fletcher told the St George Shire Standard at court.
“My issue is not so much with Mr Morrison – I disagreed with Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull’s climate policies as well, it just so happens that Mr Morrison was the Prime Minister in January.”
Cooper was previously fined $400 with no conviction for trespassing by Magistrate Les Mabbutt over their involvement in the incident.
“I’m not sorry about what happened, I am sorry if I caused any distress to members of the community or the local area but I’m not sorry about the outcome,” Cooper said at the time.
“(I did it because of) anxiety about the climate and our government’s inaction on the bushfire crisis.”
Fletcher and Cooper had live-streamed themselves drinking cider in the backyard before concerned neighbours contacted police.
“The accused and co-accused were creating videos that they were streaming live on Facebook,” police facts stated.
“The first video was of the accused on the train saying he was on his way to the Prime Minister’s house for a swim and some drinks, and encouraging people to attend.”
In a video he posted to YouTube afterwards Fletcher said he was waiting to “sh** in the Prime Minister’s pool”.