Police chopper catches Mariah Lauren Lynette Pitt fleeing stolen car

A woman who got snagged on barbed wire while fleeing a stolen car has revealed she is pregnant after pleading guilty to unlawful use of a motor vehicle, theft of a sex toy and more.

Ms Lettice said with a child on the way, it was more important that ever her client retained her new living space after years of homelessness and asked for immediate parole. Picture: Shae Beplate.

A 20-year-old woman who got caught on barbed wire while attempting to flee police has revealed she is pregnant with her first child in court.

Mariah Lauren Lynette Pitt was arrested in Wulguru on Sunday after the stolen car she’d been passenger in became bogged in the front yard of a Stuart Dr home.

Pitt’s lawyer Fleur Lettice said her client ended up in the car because she was stranded and asked a friend for a lift home.

“He organised a lift for her with one of his friends, she stated she had met the driver some days prior but he was not a friend of hers,” Ms Lettice said.

“He attended in the vehicle, collected her and advised her he needed to stop at a friend’s place on the way to dropping her home, at which point he’s pulled into a property which was not the correct property and became bogged.”

Mariah Pitt was arrested in Wulguru on Sunday after the stolen car she’d been passenger in became bogged in the front yard of a Stuart Dr home. Picture: Glenn Campbell

Ms Lettice said Pitt, who was on parole, became “nervous” and “panicked” when the driver began arguing with people at the residence and ran when police arrived on the scene.

Pitt attempted to scale a fence but became caught on barbed wire and was forced to climb down to officers, who transported her to hospital over concerns she was pregnant.

The court heard the new police helicopter played a role in the incident, capturing vision of Pitt fleeing the vehicle and linking her to the stolen Honda Accord.

Premier Steven Miles in Townsville with the new Old Police Helicopter at Townsville Airport. With Jake Keir Cam surveillance operator. Pic: Annette Dew

Pitt pleaded guilty to unlawful use of a motor vehicle (an offence which applies to both drivers and passengers caught in stolen cars) and was sentenced in Townsville Magistrates Court on Wednesday, February 28.

In addition to the motor vehicle charge, Pitt also pleaded guilty to stealing $434 worth of clothing from Myer Townsville on February 5, stealing a $184 sex-toy from Hermit Park’s Sweethearts in December, and a second unlawful use of a motor vehicle charge from 2023.

The second motor vehicle charge comes from a Cairns incident involving a white Toyota LandCruiser stolen in February 2023 and located by police in May 2023, which contained Pitt’s fingerprints.

Police prosecutor Nathan Smith said Pitt clearly had an issue with getting into stolen cars and suggested she be sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Ms Lettice pushed for a lighter sentence, arguing this incident comes just as Pitt was working to stabalise her life after realising she was pregnant with her first child.

This included successfully securing a safe place to live, engaging meaningfully with the Sisters Inside program and seeking out a mental health plan from her doctor.

Ms Lettice said with a child on the way, it was more important than ever her client retained her new living space after years of homelessness and asked for immediate parole.

Magistrate Richard Lehmann sentenced Pitt to nine months imprisonment, to commence in January 2025 once Pitt is done serving the full-time of her current sentence.

Originally published as Police chopper catches Mariah Lauren Lynette Pitt fleeing stolen car