Trial begins for Preston Alwyn Pryor, Sean Gabriel Pryor and Leigh Douglas Symons charged with armed robbery
The credibility of a key witness in a gunpoint robbery trial is under scrutiny due to his history of drug use and criminal history. Read the details from trial day two.
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A jury has been urged not to disregard the testimony of an alleged armed robbery victim, despite his criminal record and history of drug use.
On the third day of the trial of Preston Alwyn Pryor, Sean Gabriel Pryor and Leigh Douglas Symons, the jury heard from the lead investigating officer in the case and a friend of the alleged victim, before closing arguments began.
Crown prosecutor Thomasina Papadimitriou addressed the jury, stating that Mr Lees’ credibility should not be dismissed because of his background.
“It doesn’t matter that he’s a criminal, the same law that punishes him should be the same law that protects him,” she said.
“He was a man who never had money before, he clearly lived a pretty rough life prior to that so he was going to do some silly things like buy a second hand car and buy a second hand motorbike and buy them from random people.”
Ms Papadimitriou said his generosity was taken advantage of by the three men and they “hatched a plan to rob him.”
She said his recollection of events were “detailed because it’s true”.
The jury also heard when Sean Pryor was arrested he was found with the watch and ring which is alleged to have been stolen.
“There is no other explanation for that, other than that Sean Pryor was involved,” Ms Papadimitriou said.
However, the defence urged the jury to question Mr Lees’ reliability.
Defence barrister Michael Hibble, who represented Mr Symons, argued that Mr Lees was severely impaired by drugs, alcohol, and sleep deprivation at the time of the alleged offence.
“He had no basis of reality,” he said.
Preston Pryor’s barrister maintained that his client was not involved and had never met Mr Lees.
“There is no other independent evidence which connects Preston Pryor to these events.”
Defence barrister Claire Grant, who represented Sean Pryor, also challenged the credibility of Mr Lees, describing him as being on a “multi-day drug-induced bender” during the time of the alleged robbery.
She said Sean Pryor’s possession of the watch and ring was circumstantial and did not prove guilt.
“What if (Mr Lees) was smacked out on drugs for three days and left his property at (Mr Symons) house and what if the property was handed from one person to another, to another and ultimately ended in the possession of Sean Pryor,” she said.
Ms Grant also pointed out that Sean Pryor was not identified on CCTV footage from Stockland Shopping Centre on the day in question and noted inconsistencies in Mr Lees’ various accounts.
“You simply cannot act on what it is that (Mr Lees) says in the face of multiple different versions of events induced by drugs, alcohol, tiredness and a person who in any good orbit isn’t a good character.”
The trial will continue on Thursday morning as Judge Michael Burnett is expected to deliver his summary of the case before jury deliberations begin.
Trial day one
A jury has heard a man was allegedly held at gunpoint while three men robbed him
of designer items and thousands of dollars in cash, with the trio’s lawyers claiming it never happened.
In Townsville District Court on Monday, Preston Alwyn Pryor, Sean Gabriel Pryor and Leigh Douglas Symons pleaded not guilty to armed robbery with violence.
Sean Pryor also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of demanding property with menace.
On Tuesday, crown prosecutor Thomasina Papadimitriou told the jury that in November of 2023, the alleged victim, Shane Christopher Lees drove a Nissan Patrol from Longreach to Townsville with $100,000 in his bank account, which he had recently
won in an unrelated court settlement.
During Mr Lees evidence, which he gave via video link from a correctional centre, he said the purpose of the trip was to pull cash out to take back to Longreach to pay for the Nissan.
Ms Papadimitriou said after arriving in Townsville in the early hours of the morning, Mr Lees said he met two women outside his hotel room and went with them to The Ville Resort-Casino before a friend of theirs picked them up.
The court heard Mr Lees mentioned to one of the women he wanted to buy a motorbike
so they drove him to a house and he was introduced to the defendants which included Sean Pryor who arrived on a motorbike and said he wanted $17,500 for it.
Mr Lees said he would buy it and arranged to make payment the next day.
The following day bank staff helped him transfer the total sum to Mr Symon’s girlfriend’s account, Mr Lees claimed.
“Whilst at the bank, Mr Lees … took out about $4,000 for himself and he also gave Mr
Symons some money for him to go shopping,” Ms Papadimitriou said.
Mr Lees told the court he went on an expensive shopping spree by himself and bought jewellery, including a diamond ring, designer sunglasses, hats and shoes.
The crown said when he returned to his car it was no longer there, with CCTV footage showing that Mr Symons and a woman drove off in it, so Mr Lees called Sean Pryor to pick him up.
After some time, Mr Symons and Sean Pryor allegedly picked Mr Lees up and drove him to a park where the crown said they did methamphetamine and smoked a joint before one of the men said “let’s do this”.
“Mr Lees agreed to that, thinking it was a reference to them giving him the bike that he had purchased,” Ms Papadimitriou said.
The court was told the two men laughed before Sean Pryor allegedly got out of the car and pushed Mr Lees further into the back seat using his foot while he pointed a sawn off shotgun in his face.
Mr Symons also got out of the car as Preston Pryor arrived in a second vehicle and they both allegedly began to rob Mr Lees, the court heard.
“Preston Pryor yelled at Mr Lees demanding that he hand over his money,” Ms Papadimitriou said.
“When the shotgun was pointed at Mr Lees, Sean Pryor said to him the words to the effect of ‘you’re going to give us $20,000 every day, or I’m going to blow your head off.’”
The men allegedly took thousands of dollars in cash and all the items, including the jewellery, which the Longreach man had purchased that day.
During the alleged robbery, Mr Symons said words to him to the effect of “this isn’t against you my brother, this happened because you were too easy, you need to toughen up”, Ms
Papadimitriou said.
The crown said after allegedly robbing Mr Lees the men drove him back to Mr Symons house where they made him go to a room upstairs and lock the door.
The court heard that eventually, Mr Lees said he was able to escape the house through the bathroom window and ran away where he was later picked up by a friend and spoke to police.
During his evidence, Mr Lees told the court as he was driven back to the house he told the two men “all you had to do was just ask me for money and I would have given you some money instead of doing this to me”.
Shaun Pryor’s defence barrister, Claire Grant, instructed by Otsanda Law, said Mr Lees’ “two day drug induced” bender where he hadn’t slept made him an unreliable witness and put to him that Sean Pryor had never pointed a gun in his face or robbed him.
Mr Lees disagreed and said his drug use wouldn’t have impacted his memory as meth “heightens” the senses.
Leigh Symons defence barrister, Michael Hibble, instructed by Rennick lawyers, called Mr Lees a “liar” and a “manipulator” and put it to him that he was never taken to a park.
“I didn’t imagine a shotgun getting put to my head, that’s something you don’t forget,” Mr Lees said.
The trial is expected to run for three to four days in front of a jury of 10 men and three women.
Witnesses including lead police investigators, a Townsville shop assistant, Sean Pryor’s girlfriend and a friend of Mr Lees will give evidence.
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Originally published as Trial begins for Preston Alwyn Pryor, Sean Gabriel Pryor and Leigh Douglas Symons charged with armed robbery
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