Jacob Gillespie to serve jail term in the community for aggravated breaking and entering

Jacob Joshua Gillespie, of Braun Avenue in Dubbo, was in custody at Bathurst Correctional Centre and appeared in court via audio visual link on Thursday, March 30.

The 25-year-old pleaded guilty to aggravated breaking and entering while accompanied to steal an item worth less than or equal to $60,000, and failing to appear with his bail acknowledgement.

Gillespie committed the crime in Nyngan with a co-accused who has also pleaded guilty and will be sentenced in May.

Court documents state a witness saw the pair breaking into a home on Wambiana Street at 11.50am on August 12 last year and called police.

The witness lived next to the house that was being broken into and told police the two offenders were in the laneway behind the property.

Police arrived five minutes later and saw the duo running towards the backyard of the house. There was a washing machine just outside the house's Colourbond fence which was missing a panel.

Gillespie was wearing an orange and blue shirt with three-quarter length jeans and red shoes. He told police he was just taking a wheelbarrow down to the river. Police noticed both men were sweating "profusely" and Gillespie had cut his arm. They were both photographed with consent.

The neighbouring witness was shown the photos and confirmed Gillespie was the one breaking into the back door of the house next door.

Police arrested Gillespie and the co-accused before taking them to the back of the caged vehicle. While sitting there, Gillespie admitted to police he had broken into the house.

"Yeah, I did it. I don't know what I was thinking, I'm dumb," he said.

Police then got a witness statement which revealed the two entered the backyard by climbing through the back fence.

Gillespie had tried to shoulder barge the back door but after a few attempts picked up an unknown object and smashed a window. He had reached in and unlocked the door.

An unknown male entered the house with Gillespie and the co-accused. They left the location while carrying a washing machine to the back fence. The trio kicked the fence until a panel fell out. They lifted the washing machine and went up the alleyway towards another house.

The witness gave police a description of the three men which confirmed the co-accused was one of them.

Gillespie and the co-accused were taken to Nyngan Police station where the co-accused said "yeah, I f---ed up".

During this offending, the resident of the house was not home. Police called them and confirmed they had not given the offenders permission to enter the home or take the washing machine.

In court, defence solicitor Tia Hollis conceded the threshold for imprisonment had been crossed. She also pointed out that no one was home when Gillespie had broken in.

She said her client told her he fell into criminal behaviour while visiting the co-accused's family.

"He feels he was misled by a negative peer group," Ms Hollis said.

She added that Gillespie had been through a traumatic childhood and used drugs from a very young age but was now seeking opportunities for rehabilitation.

"The fact that there was or wasn't someone home, is not of great note, I don't agree [the offending] was towards lower end of object seriousness," magistrate Aaron Tang said.

Mr Tang took into account Gillespie's disadvantaged background. He was sentenced to nine months' jail for the aggravated break and enter offence but is serving a a total jail sentence of 18 months that includes unrelated offences.

For failing to appear with a bail acknowledgement Gillespie was convicted without further penalty.

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