A man who was jailed for three break and enters, stealing, and taking someone’s car without consent has had his appeal dismissed.
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Thomas Beckhurst, 46, appeared before Wagga’s District Court on Tuesday to appeal his two-year sentence, which has a non-parole period of 14 months.
Beckhurst was convicted of three counts of break, enter, and steal earlier this year – the first incident occurred on December 5 last year, the second on February 17, and the third on March 6.
The court heard that the second incident was particularly serious, given that Beckhurst broke into a residential property, stole about $1000 of electronics, and drove away in the owner’s ute.
“In my view, the offender was lucky to be charged with take and drive rather than something more serious,” Judge Gordon Lerve said.
Beckhurst was sentenced on May 14, but appeared in Wagga’s District Court on Tuesday morning via video link from the Bathurst Correctional Complex to appeal the severity of his sentence.
During his hearing, the court heard that Beckhurst was a member of the Stolen Generation and started abusing alcohol when he was just eight years old.
However, Judge Lerve ultimately denied his request, adding that the appeal was “completely lacking in merit” as the original sentence had already taken into account any potential mitigating factors.
“He has a record that is bordering on being a factor of aggravation, quite frankly,” Judge Lerve said.
“I note the indicative sentences are generous, if not bordering on the extremely lenient.”
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