A man a magistrate has described as a "one person crime wave" broke down in court after being sentenced to at least one year behind bars for a string of home invasions.
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Benjamin Zane Hindman, 42, pleaded guilty to two break and enter charges, driving while disqualified and damaging property between August and October this year.
On Tuesday, Wollongong Local Court heard that Hindman's drug-driven offending occurred after a relationship breakdown led him back to Wollongong where he resumed a methamphetamine habit.
Hindman's most recent spree of offending began on Wednesday, August 17 when he broke into a Bellambi address the owner had just left to visit a friend.
Hindman used a mop to smash the rear lounge room window. Inside, Hindman stole a PlayStation, a brown handbag and the keys to a Ford Courier ute.
Hindmand would later admit to the offences telling police he was high when he broke in, drove the car to a nearby surf club - where he abandoned it - and later sold the PlayStation to purchase more drugs.
In wollongong Local Court, Magistrate Gabriel Fleming said these offences were often hard to prove, but Hindman left a tell-tale sign.
"This is absolutely disgraceful, [but] fingerprints and guess who, it's Mr Hindman," she said.
Hindman's prints would later give him away for another break and enter, this time in Bulli in September.
The owner of a weekender on Trinity Row in Bulli locked up the house at 12pm on Sunday, 4 September, knowing he would not be back until the next weekend.
On September 11, the owner returned to the property and found the flyscreen had been removed from the window next to the front door and the window was smashed in with blood left behind.
Inspecting the scene further, the owner found the rear door had been tampered with and there were marks around the door jam and lock. The laundry door had been kicked in and a stand up paddleboard stored in the laundry had been stolen.
After police were called, forensic officers inspected the house.
"Mr Hindman's fingerprints [were] all over it, all over everything," Ms Fleming said.
Hindman was also charged with driving while disqualified until 2026, after police picked him up at a roadside breath test in Fairy Meadow in September, and damaging property after he damaged a door at the house of an acquaintance he was staying with in October.
In court on Tuesday, Ms Fleming said Hindman has a criminal history that "does him no favours".
"You've been a one person crime wave the whole year, haven't you," Ms Fleming said.
Hindman's lawyer Stewart Holt said Hindman had successful addressed his drug taking in the past and would be able to return to Crookwell as he had reconciled with his ex-partner.
"His ultimate goal is to reconcile and move back with his family, get the assistance he needs, stay away from drugs, and get back to work," he said.
In sentencing Hindman, Ms Fleming said there were "so many reasons" why Hindman should stop using methamphetamines. Appearing via audio-video link, Hindman could be seen to break down and began sobbing.
Ms Fleming sentenced Hindman to an aggregate sentence of two years imprisonment. With a non parole period of 12 months, Hindman will be eligible for release from October 22, 2023.
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