Maddison Thomson: Teen learns fate over Frankston South home invasion, joy ride in stolen luxury car
A former drug-addicted teen who snuck into a Frankston family’s home and pinched a luxury car has learned her fate.
South East
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A teen who snuck into a Frankston South home and took a stolen luxury car for a joy ride has told a court the crime was “horrible” and that she needs to “grow up”.
Maddison Thomson, 19, avoided a jail sentence in the County Court on Tuesday, claiming she was seeking help for her drug addiction following an early morning crime spree on December 3 last year.
The court heard Thomson, then 18, and an underage co-offender snuck into a Kim Close Frankston South home through an unlocked backdoor as a second co-offender kept a lookout on the street.
As the two homeowners and their two children slept, Thomson and her co-offender helped themselves to three sets of car keys before the trio jumped into their victims’ Jaguar and sped off.
The group returned with an unknown offender who took the resident’s Corolla with the second co-offender, while Thomson and the first co-offender stayed in the Jaguar.
Police watched as the cars later reached dangerous speeds down Doveton Ave in Eummering.
The drivers pulled over when police flashed their lights but as officers got out of their cars, the crims sped off.
The offenders’ luck ran out when officers discovered the Corolla parked 100m from the home of one of the first co-offender the next day.
Videos of Thomson sitting in the passenger seat of the Jaguar were found on Thomson’s phone when she was arrested on December 6 last year.
Thomson and her mates also repeatedly stole from cars and used stolen bank cards and cash to fraudulently buy burgers, booze and cigarettes in November and December last year.
The court was told Thomson was abusing ice and GHB during the “unsophisticated” crime spree.
Victim impact statements revealed the family had been left feeling terrified and unable to sleep as a result of the home invasion.
But Judge Irene Lawson said Thomson was “committed” to remaining drug free and was seeking help for her addiction and mental health issues.
“I’ve come to the realisation that I need to grow up and take responsibility for my actions … I want to start a business, purchase a car and live independently,” Thomson’s written statement read.
“My morals have changed and I am more empathetic to others, I accept what I did was horrible.”
Ms Lawson said Thomson’s abstinence from drugs was “truly remarkable”.
“You present as being dramatically different from the person who committed this offending,” she said.
Thomson was convicted of theft and home invasion and was sentenced to a two-year community corrections order.
