District Court dismisses Nambour charity shop thief’s appeal
A woman convicted of stealing iPads from a Sunshine Coast charity, who was further charged with trespass when she tried to return them, has had her appeal thrown out in court.
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A woman convicted of stealing multiple iPads from a Sunshine Coast charity, who was further charged with trespass when she tried to return them, has had her appeal thrown out in court.
Documents for the District Court in Maroochydore show the woman, Leonie Lee McKenzie, filed an appeal against the commissioner of police regarding a sentence she received after pleading guilty to a number of offences involving a charity shop.
According to the court documents McKenzie stole seven iPads, charging cords and gift cards from Neighbour Aid in Nambour after entering through an unlocked door on the morning of August 11, 2024.
The documents stated McKenzie then returned to Neighbour Aid with a number of the stolen goods about 11 pm that night.
“The defendant further stated that she reattended the location at around 11.00pm on 11 August 2024 and returned six iPads and the laptop. She described that she was “really high” at the time of committing the offence,” the court documents stated.
“It was her admission to returning to the premises which provided the evidence of the commission of the trespass offence.”
According to the court documents McKenzie was on a probation at the time of committing the offences.
McKenzie’s sentence was handed down in the Magistrates Court at Maroochydore on 22 January 2025, after she pleaded guilty.
The enter premises and commit indictable offence charges received a six-month prison sentence with a parole release date on the day of sentencing.
McKenzie was convicted and not further punished for the trespass-unlawfully enter or remain in place for business charge.
She filed an appeal on January 29, according to the court documents, arguing the Magistrate’s sentence was excessive due to a “failure to have regard to the totality principle.”
District Court judge Gary Long ruled the sentence ordered by the magistrate was not “manifestly excessive” and dismissed McKenzie’s appeal.
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Originally published as District Court dismisses Nambour charity shop thief’s appeal
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