Cody Hargreaves pleads guilty to theft, driving offences

A Norlane man turned to stealing after losing his job during Covid. But his thefts weren’t the only reason why he faced court.

Cody Hargreaves outside the Geelong Magistrates Court

A Norlane thief who has faced court for a list of “unsophisticated” crimes, including stealing golf clubs and an Aldi vacuum cleaner, has walked away with a community corrections order.

Cody Hargreaves, 33, was also caught driving several times despite having lost his learners permit.

He was convicted and sentenced to a 12-month community correction order in the Geelong Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

Magistrate Michelle Hodgson said the driving matters were of concern.

“You lost your licence for a compelling reason, but you have continued to drive since that day pretty regularly”,” she said.

Hargreaves pleaded guilty to theft, unlicensed driving, possession of methyl amphetamine and burglary.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Kathleen Hewitt said Hargreaves committed several thefts from January 2022 to May 2023.

The court heard he had walked into a staff only room at indoor golf simulation centre Geelong Golf Studio at Mercer St, in Geelong, on May 31 and stole three golf clubs, valued at $1500.

The court heard he had asked his brother to pawn the golf clubs to buy a tablet for his nephew.

Ms Hewitt said Hargreaves also stole several other items including a robotic vacuum cleaner from Aldi valued at $399 and goods from a Woolworths in Highton valued at $1000.

The court was also told Hargreaves had his learners permit cancelled in October 2021 and was caught driving unlicensed in February 2023.

He was also caught driving while disqualified on Cox Rd at Corio in May 2023 and was found with methyl amphetamine.

Hargreaves’ lawyer, Simon Northeast, said his client had been unemployed for about two years throughout Covid and started offending “as soon as money became scarce”.

He said the burglaries were “unsophisticated” and “spontaneous”.

Originally published as Cody Hargreaves pleads guilty to theft, driving offences