Joshua Lee Jeffries allegedly steals $150,000 of material from partially-built Ballarat houses

A construction supervisor allegedly stole $150,000 worth of materials from Ballarat construction sites to give his house a sparkling new makeover.

Joshua Lee Jeffries, 32, appeared in Ballarat Magistrates' Court applying for bail on July 6, 2023. Photo: Facebook

A Sebastopol tradie allegedly nicked home appliances and building materials from construction sites across Ballarat to renovate his own house and fuel a drug habit.

Joshua Lee Jeffries was aged 32 when in February and March 2023 he is alleged to have undertaken a “well-organised, persistent burglary operation” at houses in Bonshaw, Brown Hill, Smythes Creek, and Winter Valley.

The construction supervisor poked his tongue out playfully towards his family before a summary of his alleged thefts — worth some $150,000 across more than 50 charges — was read out in Ballarat Magistrates’ Court.

Mr Jeffries allegedly gained access to several partially built homes by cutting a hole into plaster and reaching through to unlock garages.

Joshua Jeffries’ former Sebastopol home is now for sale.

Prosecutors said GPS data from Mr Jeffries’ car placed him at many of the alleged crime scenes, from which it is claimed he took what Magistrate Simon Zebrowski called “an enormous cornucopia of new housing materials”.

Those included a rare gas-powered concrete polisher and accessories worth more than $37,000, ovens, dishwashers, cooktops, hot water services, microwaves, dishwashers, bathroom and plumbing fittings, televisions, a chainsaw, bedside tables, toilets, roller blinds, and vanity basins.

So repetitive was the alleged offending that Mr Zebrowski interrupted the summary to skim through the rest of it, saying “same thing … same M.O.”.

Seized items from Mr Jeffries’ home filled two trucks.

When a warrant was executed at Mr Jeffries’ Sebastopol home in early March, investigators noticed the house appeared to be under renovation: some of the allegedly stolen items, such as an awning window, had already been installed.

Police filled two trucks seizing the spoils of Mr Jeffries’ alleged thieving.

The court heard Mr Jeffries sold some of the items on Facebook under a false name and admitted to police to being a methamphetamine user for the previous six months.

Mr Jeffries spent 126 days in custody and applied for bail on Thursday.

Prosecutors put forward that, if bailed, there would be an unacceptable risk of Mr Jeffries offending.

But, with strict conditions, including reporting to Ballarat Police Station every day, and the $10,000 surety of Mr Jeffries’ brother, Mr Zebrowski granted his release.

Mr Jeffries’ Edwards St house is now up for sale.

The part of the home’s front which held the alleged stolen window is boarded over.