Beggar Trung Thanh Ngo behind bars over COVID-19 breaches at Coles supermarket in Dandenong
A man who has fallen on hard times of late has resorted to begging outside Dandenong Coles for extra cash. But he hasn’t been keeping up with stage 4 restrictions, having breached the COVID-19 rules a staggering number of times.
South East
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A beggar caught breaching COVID-19 directions 20 times is spending his 12th night in jail on Tuesday.
Trung Thanh Ngo has been repeatedly nabbed by PSOs sitting outside Coles supermarket in Dandenong being out in the community without a lawful excuse or wearing a mask.
The 44-year-old from Dandenong has already spent 11 days behind bars for breaching previous bail conditions stating he must follow coronavirus control regulations.
He has now been remanded in custody for another day for a mental health assessment to be made.
At Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday he pleaded guilty via video link to contravening the Chief Health Officer’s directions.
The court heard on September 16 Ngo was seen by PSOs sitting on the ground outside the Princes Highway store with a cap containing coins.
He was arrested for breaching bail conditions which included following all state health requirements.
Just five days earlier he had been caught doing the same thing at the same place, again without adhering to CHO regulations.
Between April 13 and 28 August this year he had been issued with 18 similar COVID-19 pandemic infringements.
Ngo’s defence lawyer said while the original hearing was listed as a bail application, he was now pleading guilty to the charges.
Magistrate Julie O’Donnell said before this recent spate of offending, Ngo had not faced a court since 2005.
She said something had obviously gone wrong for him recently for it to lead to him begging outside a supermarket.
“Clearly he is a man who is struggling,” Ms O’Donnell said.
“There had been a 15-year gap, he had not offended for 15 years.
“Yes, failing to comply with CHO directions is a concern, but he may need assistance for mental health issues.”
Breaching health officer’s directions is not punishable by a jail sentence, it can only result in a fines.
Ngo will be sentenced on Wednesday.
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