NT crime: Cale Drummond sentenced for Palmerston home invasion

A Darwin dad who inflicted a horror home invasion hacked away at his former classmate’s leg with a machete as he was begged to stop. Find out how long he was jailed for.

Darwin father Cale Drummond was sentenced at the NT Supreme Court on June 27 for a violent home invasion in Palmerston.

A Darwin father has been sentenced for a violent home invasion in which he repeatedly hacked his former schoolmate with a machete.

On Friday, Cale Drummond, 35, pleaded guilty to two counts of recklessly endangering death, criminal damage, aggravated burglary, attempted robbery and unlawful assault causing serious harm.

The court heard at about midnight on March 12, 2024, Drummond and an unknown accomplice climbed the back fence of a Bellamack residence with the intention to invade.

Armed and wearing balaclavas, the pair fired a modified .22 calibre weapon through the glass sliding door twice, missing a male occupant, who was in the lounge room, by 1.5 metres.

Drummond and an unknown co-offender armed themselves with a modified .22 calibre firearm which they fired multiple times during the home invasion.

Drummond and his accomplice smashed their way through the fly screen in search of money.

The male occupant and a woman managed to lock themselves in a room, however a third occupant found herself isolated and at the mercy of a machete-wielding Drummond who shouted “where’s the cash?” at her.

When the woman said she was on a pension and “had no money”, Drummond ordered her to stay in the lounge room while he and his co-offender went after the remaining residents.

After trying to smash down their door with a tomahawk, one of the offenders ran outside and fired the .22 firearm through a louvred window at one of the sheltered occupants.

When the occupants refused to open the bedroom door, Drummond yelled “just shoot them”, “unlock the door” and “where is the money?”

Two more shots were fired through the louvered window, with one round narrowly missing the woman’s head.

As he was hacking a man with a machete, the victim recognised Drummond as his former schoolmate.

When the door was opened, Drummond furiously slashed the male occupant with a machete.

The man fell to the ground, and Drummond struck him with the machete four more times above the knee causing a serious laceration.

As he was being hacked, the man recognised Drummond as his former high school classmate.

“Is that you Cale?” he asked.

Drummond continued to slash the man, who begged for him to stop.

Before fleeing, Drummond pointed the firearm at his former classmate and threatened him.

“Don’t you say my name or I’ll come back and shoot you and your family,” he said.

In a bid to cover up his tracks, Drummond hid the firearm in his father’s home.

When Drummond was arrested the next day in Nightcliff, he told police he had been with his partner the whole night.

The court heard Drummond’s co-offender remains unknown. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Drummond’s co-offender has not been identified.

The ordeal had left the victims “terrorised”, according to Justice Lex Lasry.

“The consequences of your conduct will obviously affect their lives for some time to come,” he said.

The court heard Drummond’s criminal history began in 2013 and included aggravated assault, drug offences, weapon offences and offences of dishonesty.

Drummond has also recorded various breaches of court orders pertaining to bail conditions and suspended sentences.

Justice Lasry said the Darwin-born father’s “prospects for rehabilitation are low”.

Drummond was sentenced to a total of nine years imprisonment, backdated to March 12, 2024.

A non-parole period of five years was imposed.

Originally published as NT crime: Cale Drummond sentenced for Palmerston home invasion