An Illawarra woman accused of attempting to break into a home on a secluded Otford property while the owner was at home admitted to police she thought there might be money in the house because it looked expensive.
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Police allege Laura Steynen, 44, was caught in the act by the man however told him she was only at his place to look at his bee hives.
Police documents tendered to Wollongong Local Court said the victim was upstairs ironing a t-shirt on the morning of November 25 when he heard the shattering of a window downstairs and went to investigate.
He allegedly saw Steynen’s head pop up outside the kitchen window, then when she moved to back door, he noticed she had hold of a 25cm-long bee hive tool shaped like a chisel.
The victim asked what she was holding, to which Steynen allegedly responded “ “it’s not a weapon, it’s a hive tool”.
The victim then asked Steynen what she was doing on his property.
“I didn’t think anyone was home,” she said.
He asked her to leave and she did, however the victim discovered his kitchen window had been smashed and went after Steynen, following her to Otford Railway Station where he contacted police.
Steynen was arrested and taken to Wollongong Police Station where she was formally interviewed.
“During the interview, the accused stated it looked like a nice house, she saw that there was a nice computer inside and thought that there would be money in the house,” court documents said.
Steynen applied for bail during a recent court appearance, with her lawyer saying she had a long history of schizophrenia.
Prosecutors opposed Steynen’s release, noting she had an extensive record for breaches of bail and failing to appear in court.
Steynen was ultimately refused bail and remanded in custody after the court found there were no conditions that could be imposed that would mitigate the risk of her committing further offences.
The case will return to court in mid-January.
