A Wodonga man who stole vehicles, ransacked properties and repeatedly dumped stolen goods in North East bushland has pleaded guilty to a crime spree fuelled by drug addiction. The 45-year-old appeared at Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court last Wednesday pleading guilty to charges from a North East and Border region crime spree. The court heard the serial burglar faced charges dating back to December 2024 involving multiple vehicle thefts and burglaries of local businesses, private properties and a primary school. On the night of 28 December 2025 the man broke into a Wangaratta business on Parfitt Road and stole a tipper truck, which he drove through steel gates. The truck was found abandoned at the Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park and had been spray painted along the side panels. On 3 September 2025 the accused stole a boat and trailer from a Mayfair Court, Wangaratta home using a Mitsubishi Triton he had stolen in Wodonga weeks earlier. That same Triton was found dumped in bushland at Eldorado on 16 September. During another search of the Eldorado bush site days later, police found a stolen Fire and Rescue NSW trailer from Albury valued at $10,000, along with a stolen quad bike and another stolen trailer. The court heard the man’s DNA was found on a VB can inside one of the trailers. On the night of 19 September, the accused stole a dirtbike, a motorcycle, a trailer and Australian Defence Force equipment from a Bobinawarrah property. Three days later the accused returned to the property riding the stolen dirt bike, which the victim recognised. He stole more items from the garage as the victim filmed the man and called police. That same night, police arrested the man riding the dirt bike on Mummery Lane, Myrtleford, on drugs and unlicenced. In November 2025, the man stole a Toyota Hilux in Albury, which was later found left in the Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park a day later. On 12 December the man broke into the Wooragee Primary School and stole a ride on lawn mower. He had various run-ins with police in Wodonga and one in Benalla, where officers often found him “equipped to steal” and with drugs. He was put into custody on 3 January 2026, when police found a truck on his front lawn which had recently rammed a police car in Wodonga. A number of the stolen items along with cannabis and methylamphetamine were found during a search of his home. The accused denied stealing most of the items to police. The court heard the man was granted bail in June to a Wangaratta rehabilitation centre, where he only stayed one day. He was arrested again on 31 August and has served 223 days in custody. Defence counsel Jonathan Rattray said his client turned to stealing to fuel his drug addiction. Mr Rattray submitted to have his client immediately released on a combination sentence, however Magistrate Peter Dunn was not convinced, given he would be released to the same Wodonga home where he stored the various stolen items. “His dependence on drugs has made him a prolific thief and burglar,” Magistrate Dunn said. The man was remanded into custody to return for further plea on 19 November.
