Cody Gene Bartley was jailed for stealing cars

This young man had been released on parole about two weeks before he stole a Mercedes Benz and dumped it in floodwater. See what happened when he appeared in court. 

Cody Gene Bartley had been released on parole less than two weeks when he stole a Mercedes-Benz and dumped it in floodwater at Nobby.

The February 26 offence was the first in a string of car thefts Bartley would go on to commit before he was arrested on March 31 and sent back to jail.

On Friday, the 26-year-old father pleaded guilty in the Toowoomba Magistrates Court to four counts of unlawful use of a motor vehicle, one count of failing to provide police access to information stored electronically and four property offences.

Police prosecutor Rohan Brewster-Webb told the court Bartley’s fingerprints and DNA were found in the Mercedes after it was pulled from the floodwater.

Bartley was also caught on CCTV while driving it.

Mr Brewster-Webb added that Bartley was linked to the theft of a Hyundai Santa Fe wagon on March 20 and the theft of a Mazda on March 31.

All of the offences were committed while Bartley was on parole.

“(Bartley) has spent numerous periods in prison previously and has prior breaches of suspended sentences,” Mr Brewster-Webb said.

“He also has eight prior convictions for unlawful use of a motor vehicle.”

Bartley appeared in the Magistrates Court by video link, having spent the 64 days in pre-sentence custody after his arrest in March.

Acting in his defence, solicitor Claire Graham told the court 10 of those days were spent in isolation and that the Covid pandemic and overcrowding had made prison stay harsher than it ordinarily would have been.

Ms Graham acknowledged that her client had a “poor” criminal history but said the bulk of his offending stemmed from a decade-long meth addiction.

“It seems to be his fallback position in times of stress,” she said.

“Things were going quite well for him and his daughter was born on February 24 of this year but by March 1 she was back in hospital with (health problems).”

The court heard the infant’s run of bad health was too much for Bartley to handle so he slid back into drug use and resumed his old habit of stealing cars.

Acting Magistrate Roger Stark gave Bartley credit for his early plea but also took into account that the offences were committed while he was on parole.

Bartley was sentenced to 15 months in jail.

He will be released on parole on August 30.