Serial Illawarra criminal Wayne Russell was in familiar territory last Friday night.
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Exactly 40 days after last seeing the inside of a prison cell, the 27-year-old found himself behind bars again, settling in for a 12 month sentence.
Port Kembla Local Court heard Russell had been released to parole on June 20 after serving a six month sentence for larceny, but had been unable to keep his hands clean for long, with police catching him with a stolen motorbike and in possession of house breaking tools on the evening of July 30.
Police documents said Russell and a young male were seen pushing two motorbikes into the rear of a Belmore Street property around 7.50pm in a manner that appeared suspicious, prompting a witness to report the incident to police.
The witness saw Russell push one of the bikes between a fence and a garden while urging the young man to ‘‘hurry up’’.
The witness followed the men while remaining on the phone, and told police he could hear the pair talking and trying to start both bikes.
A short time later the pair returned to the front of the property, minus one of the bikes, and began walking back towards the Denison Street pedestrian underpass.
Police arrived and circulated a description of the two offenders to other police vehicles.
The pair were found near the Throsby Drive underpass and ordered to stop, but Russell ran off.
He was apprehended in a driveway in Smith Street after a short pursuit.
Police found several items associated with house breaking in Russell’s backpack, including spanners and pliers.
The youth was also arrested.
Court documents said the pair both have long criminal records, with Russell charged with 62 offences in the past including break and enter, entering enclosed lands, having suspected stolen goods and assault.
When he appeared in court on Friday, Russell immediately entered guilty pleas to two charges and was sentenced to 12 months’ jail.