Bundoora Hotel: Jacob Carpenter-Gittos found with stolen clothes
A man struck luck at the pokies at a pub in Melbourne’s north and decided to make a risky purchase. Unfortunately for him, it was right before police arrived.
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A punter was found carrying almost $2400 worth of stolen designer clothing when police picked him up from a pub in Melbourne’s north early on a Monday morning.
Unluckily for him, Jacob Peter Carpenter-Gittos had only bought the loot after having had luck at the pokies shortly before police arrived, Heidelberg Magistrates’ Court has heard.
Police arrested Carpenter-Gittos at Bundoora Hotel on August 19 after seeing him in a car that sped away from them earlier in the morning, the court heard.
Prosecutor Senior Constable Matt Isaac said police were patrolling Macleans Rd, Bundoora, about 3.45am when they saw a man and woman removing large bags from a boot.
He said the car “took off at a great speed” and was driven erratically after police tried to approach it.
At the pub, police recognised Carpenter-Gittos from the incident, and found he was carrying a bag containing 15 pieces of designer clothing with price tags still attached, and another man’s driver’s licence and Visa card.
The court heard the young father-to-be had just bought the bag of stolen clothing, valued at $2367.74, for $300 from a man he’d befriended hours earlier, after winning $500 on the pokies.
Carpenter-Gittos and his girlfriend had gotten a lift to the pub with the man and his girlfriend, after the foursome hit it off at Preston’s Somerville Hotel.
The court heard Carpenter-Gittos knew there “was something shonky going on”, planning to sell the high-end clothing, and was also planning to put the foreign licence in the bin and use the Visa card for tap and go purchases.
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The court heard Carpenter-Gittos, who was couch surfing at the time, had a “bad history” of dishonesty offences and breaching community correctional orders and had previously suffered from drug use.
He pleaded guilty to the charges before him, but Magistrate Jennifer Tregent refused to give him just a fine, saying being “the middle man” was worse than being the thief.
“If it wasn’t for the people prepared to handle, no one would steal anything. There’d be no point,” she said.
Ms Tregent ordered he complete a community corrections order with conviction, including 120 hours unpaid community work for the community he was stealing from.