Sheldon William Brown sentenced to 12 months jail after stealing car, fuel and driving dangerously at Gold Coast

A 19-year-old who helped break into an elderly man’s home, steal his car and drive 160km/h near the Gold Coast during a eight-hour crime spree has faced court.

A teenager has faced the harsh penalties of the law after facing court for driving a stolen vehicle and driving through the Gold Coast.

Between 9pm on January 5 and 8am on January 6, an unknown assailant broke into the Toowoomba home of an 85-year-old man and stole the keys to his 2014 BMW hatchback while Sheldon William Brown stood as lookout for police.

The duo proceeded to steal the vehicle from the man’s driveway, where after some time, Brown got behind the wheel of the vehicle while heavily under the influence of drugs.

During an almost eight-hour stint, Brown would commit serious and dangerous offences that saw $142 worth of fuel stolen, a CamelBak hydration pack stolen from a woman’s car at Dreamworld, and reckless driving and near-miss collisions along the Logan and Pacific Motorways at speeds of about 160km/h.

Toowoomba Magistrates Court was told Polair and additional police support were called to the motorways where they tracked Brown, who admitted to driving the stolen vehicle, for more than an hour before having to refuel themselves.

The chase, which was caught on dashcam footage, saw Brown “weaving in and out of traffic, driving on the wrong side of the road, mounting footpaths … tailgating other vehicles, breaking suddenly, almost colliding with guard rails” and almost hitting other cars, police prosecutor Chris Willson told the court.

On January 18, Brown was spotted by Toowoomba police, who found he was wanted over other matters.

After he was stopped, Brown disclosed his involvement in the January 5 and 6 offences, claiming he “would rather be honest about the incident”, Senior Constable Willson told the court.

Brown, 19, reportedly told the police a passenger told him Polair was tracking his movements on the motorways “so he began to drive faster and more dangerously because he didn’t want police to spike the tyres and catch them”.

Toowoomba Courthouse in Hume St

“He’s breaking into houses, stealing cars, driving dangerously to avoid police, stealing fuel and stealing property in general,” Constable Willson said.

“He placed himself and other road users at an unacceptable risk by his driving and he also invaded the privacy of the elderly 85-year-old gentleman to steal the BMW in the first place.”

Duty lawyer Ryan McCullough told the court Brown had started using drugs at an early age, including methamphetamines from 15 years old, with the teenager injecting the drug after a recent stint in custody.

Brown, who has untreated Asperger’s syndrome, ODD, ADHD, depression and anxiety, said the heavy use of drugs contributed to the offending, and he accepted his actions were “exceedingly serious and dangerous”.

“The community is well and truly sick of people entering their homes, stealing their car keys and taking their cars, and then driving those vehicle dangerously,” Magistrate Clare Kelly said.

“You are very lucky that you did not collide with other people or cause physical damage or injury to any other road user or yourself, or anyone in the vehicle with you.”

Brown pleaded guilty in Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Thursday, January 19 to two counts of stealing, as well as one count each of dangerous operations of a vehicle, driving without due care, enter dwelling and commit, enter premises and commit indictable offence, and unlawful use of a motor vehicle.

Brown was sentenced to 12 months jail, with parole eligibility set for April 18, 2023. Upon release, he would be subject to parole conditions until January 2024.

Originally published as Sheldon William Brown sentenced to 12 months jail after stealing car, fuel and driving dangerously at Gold Coast