Tyson Ellis sentenced after stealing caravan, tools in crime spree

A Central Queensland bricklayer-turned-druggie whose long list of crimes included pinching a caravan from the Gold Coast and trying to sell stolen tools on Facebook Marketplace has been sentenced.

Tyson Jeffrey Ellis was sentenced in Gladstone Magistrates Court.

A man has been sentenced in a Central Queensland court for his crime spree which included stealing a caravan.

Tyson Jeffrey Ellis, 27, appeared in custody in Gladstone Magistrates Court where he pleaded guilty to multiple charges including two counts of stealing, three counts of receiving tainted property, and one count each of entering premises and committing an indictable offence, entering premises with intent, and possessing drug utensils.

The court heard Ellis’s offending involved stealing a caravan at Runaway Bay, Queensland, last August.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Jessica McLaren said Ellis was with another person when he “drove away” in the caravan which was later recovered with some minor damage.

She said the other stealing offence just days later, which was captured on CCTV footage, involved Ellis entering a worksite and taking tools which he then attempted to sell on Facebook Marketplace.

Tyson Jeffrey Ellis.

The court heard the receiving tainted property offences related to Ellis being found in possession of clothing including Calvin Klein shorts, six identification cards belonging to another person, and a further ID card belonging to someone else.

Police also caught him with glass pipes used for smoking drugs.

In February this year, Ellis stole a nail gun worth $1099 from a Bunnings store.

Solicitor Jun Pepito said Ellis, who had previously worked as a bricklayer, had drug issues and he knew he needed to “clean himself up.”

Mr Pepito said Ellis’s life had spiralled after the tragic death of his partner to cancer.

The court heard Ellis had an eight-page criminal history and the full-time expiry date of the jail sentence he was currently serving was September 8, 2026.

For these offences before the court on April 10, Magistrate Mary Buchanan sentenced him to nine months’ jail, declared 58 days’ pre-sentence custody as time already served, and fixed parole eligibility at May 12, 2024.

Convictions were recorded.

Originally published as Tyson Ellis sentenced after stealing caravan, tools in crime spree