Teen walks free with a slap on the wrist after Bendigo crime spree

A teen who broke into a Bendigo mother’s home while her little kids slept inside has been released from custody again after dodging a jail sentence.

A teenager pleaded guilty to breaking into a Bendigo mother’s house while her “very young children” slept inside.

A teen behind a terrifying Bendigo crime spree — where he turned his victim’s lives “upside down” by breaking into homes and stealing cars — has walked free despite police urging he remain locked up.

The teen pleaded guilty to several crimes across Bendigo relating to home invasions and stealing cars

The teen’s lawyer told a Children’s Court he now understood he needed to make “better decisions” after spending 114 days behind bars.

The teen’s lawyer conceded the offending had “a huge impact” on a woman who had “very young children in the home”.

The teenager pleaded guilty and was released on a deferral of sentence for 12 months.

Two further victims of his crime spree also wished to express the impact his offending had on them after he “turned their entire lives upside down”, the court heard.

Arguing for his release, the teen’s lawyer said he should be given a deferred sentence so he could engage with support services and turn his life around.

A deferred sentence places the accused on a 12-month program so they can access rehabilitation programs and if they behave themselves they are given a much more lenient sentence.

Police argued the teen should remain in custody to teach him a lesson and to protect the community after he had continued to offend while on bail.

Magistrate Trieu Huynh said the teen had committed “very serious offending” while on bail granted to him “by the Supreme Court no less”.

He said both the prosecution and defence submissions “had merit” but he had to balance community protection with the rehabilitation of a youth offender.

Mr Huynh said the teen had “talked the talk”, showing empathy for his victims, but now needed to demonstrate it.

The teen’s sentence was deferred with bail – meaning that if he doesn’t reoffend for 12 months he will receive a lenient sentence.

Mr Huynh said this gave the teen an opportunity to engage with support services, but he would also be accountable, and if he reoffended then the law would come down on him.