Dylan Bradley Castle pointed knife and told customers to put hands in air during armed robbery

The 34-year-old was armed with a knife when he robbed a service station in front of customers. See what happened here:

A 34-year-old man with a history of violence has been jailed for four years for his role in the armed robbery of a Roma service station.

Dylan Bradley Castle claimed he was high on ice when he and a so far unidentified male associate entered a Roma service station on the night of September 19, 2022, Toowoomba District Court heard.

Castle was armed with a knife and while his associate watched the door, keeping others from entering, he yelled to the customers to put their hands up and not to move before pointing a knife at the two counter attendants and demanding cash and cigarettes.

Dylan Bradley Castle.

Crown prosecutor Nicole Friedewald told the court Castle and his associate had disguised themselves to an extent but Castle was identified on the store’s CCTV camera footage of the incident.

The pair left with cash, cigarettes, some chocolates and a hat taken from a hat rack, she said.

Castle was found by police two days later and taken into custody where he had remained for the ensuing 303 days, she said.

Castle appeared in custody to plead guilty to armed robbery in company.

Ms Friedewald said Castle had years of criminal history mainly for public nuisance but also offences of violence and in 2014 he was sentenced to four and a half years’ jail for the grievous bodily harm of two men, aged 73 and 64 respectively at the time, who he had bashed outside a Brisbane hotel.

Castle’s barrister Jens Streit told the court his client instructed he was high on ice, off his medication, unemployed and had no money at the time of the robbery.

Since being in custody, his client had been receiving mental health treatment and was now on regular injections to help with that, he said.

Upon his release from jail it was Castle’s intention to obtain work in construction in Brisbane, he said.

Judge Jennifer Rosengren

Judge Jennifer Rosengren armed robbery was a serious offence which had a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

“Armed robberies against innocent people in public places are very serious and they do warrant deterrent sentences,” she told him.

However, accepting that Castle was remorseful, Judge Rosengren sentenced him to four years in jail but, declaring 303 days pre-sentence custody as time served under the sentence, ordered he be eligible to apply for release on parole as of January 20, 2024, after having served 16 months in jail.