A Wollongong man accused of crashing a stolen vehicle through the fence of a Mt Warrigal dentist surgery last month was allegedly involved in a police chase through the Crown Street Mall three months earlier, a court has heard.
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Police allege Rian Kinloch had finished just serving parole on robbery charges when he drove a stolen Holden Commodore through the mall one evening in mid-June as he tried to flee from pursuing police.
He was arrested, charged and remanded in custody for two-and-a-half months until Magistrate Peter Thompson granted him strict bail on September 4, which included a condition not to be in the driver’s seat of a vehicle.
However, it is alleged that’s exactly where Kinloch was a little over a week later.
Court documents said he was behind the wheel of another stolen Holden Commodore when it was seen travelling at speed along Lake Entrance Road in Mt Warrigal on the morning of September 13 before hitting a kerb and crashing through the fence of the Total Care Dentist Surgery.
The vehicle came to a rest in a flower bed, with the force of the impact causing the airbags to deploy and damaging the front of the vehicle.
Bystanders told police they saw two men get out of the vehicle, with one witness able to snap a photo of the two men on their mobile phone.
Police will allege this photo depicts Kinloch and his passenger, Michael Honan.
The witnesses said the pair “wiped down” the vehicle and Kinloch grabbed clothing from the backseat before they took off up Madigan Boulevard.
Police allege Kinloch dumped the clothing in the rear yard of a house before fleeing, while Honan was arrested inside a nearby premises.
Meantime, the damaged vehicle was towed to a police holding yard at Albion Park. Forensic testing on the deployed airbag returned a DNA result matching Kinloch.
He was arrested on Wednesday evening while reporting to Wollongong Police Station on bail.
He fronted court on Thursday, finding himself back in front of Magistrate Thompson seeking bail.
The 28-year-old was not so lucky this time, with Magistrate Thompson refusing to release him from custody.
“The case against you is overwhelming,” he said.
The matter returns to court on November 6.