Braydon Connor Johnstone and Ebony Kelly-Nelder face court for three-day crime spree
A couple who pledged to be each other’s “ride or die” is behind bars after going on a crime spree which saw them involved in multiple carjackings, thefts, kidnappings, and a high-speed police chase.
The Wagga News
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A couple sentenced to jail for their “ice-fuelled” crime spree across the region that involved multiple carjackings and ended during a high-speed police chase pledged to be each others ‘ride or die’.
Wodonga residents Braydon Connor Johnstone, 26, and Ebony Kelly-Nelder, 27, appeared via video link in Wagga District Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to multiple charges relating to car theft, kidnapping, assault and dangerous driving.
Court documents state the crime spree happened between November 18 and 20, 2018, when Johnstone was “flat out on ice” and had no sleep in the three days prior.
In the first car theft, Johnstone borrowed a Toyota Camry, which Kelly-Nelder also drove, and never returned it.
In another incident, Johnstone tried to steal another car at a petrol station but couldn’t start it because it was manual.
The next day, Johnstone used a knife to threaten the driver of a Holden Statesman in Lavington before stealing the victim’s mobile phone and the car.
He and Kelly-Nelder then stole a Holden Commodore in Victoria after Johnstone punched and dragged the victim out.
On the final day of their spree, Kelly-Nelder was driving the Commodore, with Johnstone inside, and led police on a high-speed chase on the Olympic Highway towards Wagga.
Police had to use air support and road spikes before finally arresting the duo after they tried to steal a ute, with two men inside, at Uranquinty.
Prior to their arrest, Johnstone and Kelly-Nelder also stole nearly 100 litres worth of petrol from Corowa and North Albury stations.
On Thursday, the court heard Johnstone was on a “massive ice bender” leading up to the offending.
The court also heard Johnstone has had a “non-altering” mild intellectual disability since he was a child that makes him having trouble connecting cause and effect.
Judge Gordon Lerve said that while he was aware “mild” should not be misinterpreted because it involved “substantial deficits” in cognitive abilities, there was no “appropriate alternative to a sentence of full-time custody”.
As for Kelly-Nelder, the court heard she had also been using ice leading up to the crime spree.
A psychiatric report stated she was kicked out of home as a child because of ongoing conflict with her mother. She had also been taking medication in relation to mental health issues.
However, Judge Lerve said the details about her upbringing were lacking and that her medication uses were self-reported, which “the court could put little if any weight on them”.
The court also heard she wanted to end her relationship with Johnstone but he had allegedly threatened to bash her.
Judge Lerve said “the multiplicity of offending, the maximum penalties involved and the standard non-parole periods prescribed for some of the offences” meant both offenders must be sentenced to jail.
He also said he could not find both offenders remorseful and unlikely to reoffend, as well as it being too early to tell if there were good prospects of rehabilitation.
Johnstone was sentenced to eight years and six months’ jail with a non-parole period of five years and six months.
Kelly-Nelder was sentenced to eight years’ jail with a non-parole period of five years and had numerous driving disqualifications imposed.
Following their sentencing, Johnstone told Kelly-Nelder via video that he had sent her a letter and she told him: “ride or die”.
Johnstone had pleaded guilty to three counts of dishonestly obtaining property by deception and two counts each of stealing a car — including one aggravated — and aggravated kidnapping for advantage.
He also pleaded guilty to one count each of attempted aggravated stealing of a car, armed robbery, attempted robbery and receiving stolen property from outside NSW.
One count of taking a car without the owner’s consent was also taken into account.
Kelly-Nelder pleaded guilty to three counts of dishonestly obtaining property by deception, two counts each of aggravated kidnapping and car thefts, and one count of attempted aggravated stealing of a car.
She also pleaded guilty to one count each of aggravated stealing of a car, receiving stolen property outside of NSW, police pursuit, using an offensive weapon to avoid arrest and common assault.
Related charges to which she pleaded guilty were two counts of driving in a dangerous manner and one count each of driving with illicit substances in her blood and driving while disqualified.
Judgement in full