A Shepparton man was assaulted during an aggravated burglary by some former friends, before again being attacked at a bus stop two weeks later.
Leanne Sheree Lock, 42, Scott Lock, 21, and Frederick Thompson, 22, pleaded guilty in Shepparton Magistrates’ Court to aggravated burglary, two counts of assault, criminal damage and theft.
Thompson also pleaded guilty to robbery, two counts of committing an indictable offence while on bail, contravening a bail condition, dishonestly receiving stolen goods and resisting police.
Ms Lock also pleaded guilty to possessing and using cannabis.
Adam Kelly, 22, pleaded guilty to robbery, threatening to inflict serious harm, using a carriage service to harass, failing to answer bail and committing an indictable offence while on bail.
All four were given community corrections orders, with Thompson and Kelly also given jail sentences, to be reckoned as time already served in pre-sentence custody.
Prosecutor Anna Martin told the court Thompson and his then Shepparton housemates Leanne and Scott Lock, who are mother and son, went to their former friend’s house on July 16, 2019.
Mr Lock punched the man in the head and he was also hit with a vacuum cleaner pole.
The man’s partner was also punched in the mouth by Ms Lock before the trio left with a television.
After the aggravated burglary, Kelly sent four messages to the two victims of the aggravated burglary, including ones saying “drop charges” and “gonna bash yas with bats again”.
In a separate incident two weeks later, on July 31, 2019, the same man was attacked by Thompson and Kelly while waiting for a bus in Maude St, near Coles.
The man was punched, stomped on and kicked, leaving him with broken ribs, while his wallet was also stolen.
In a victim impact statement read to the court, the man said he had to move because of the crimes and was now worried whether he was safe in his own home.
The female victim said she was “scared and anxious all the time” and had been admitted to hospital.
She also said she never left home on her own anymore and “can’t deal with crowds”.
Mr Lock’s barrister Kestin Mildenhall said her client had been friends with the victims and had stayed at their house regularly, but the friendship had soured.
She said Mr Lock had gone to the house to get his Xbox back.
Ms Mildenhall said Mr Lock had never been in trouble with the police before but had led “a chaotic life” growing up.
She said he had started using drugs at the age of 13.
Ms Lock’s barrister Anastasios Antos told the court his client’s life was “one of chaos”, and that she had started smoking cannabis and drinking alcohol at the age of 12.
He said while she had three relevant priors, they had been “sporadic”.
Thompson’s barrister Anthony Grant spoke of his client’s troubled childhood, which included him starting to use drugs at the age of 13.
He said his client was now living in Upper Coomera on the Gold Coast in Queensland and was working as a gardener.
Kelly’s barrister Tim Fitzpatrick said his client was now living in the NSW town of Dapto with his father and had been offered an apprenticeship.
He told the court Kelly had an acquired brain injury from a scooter accident when he was 15 and had had a “significant drug issue”, but had since self-rehabilitated.
Kelly was sentenced to 35 days in prison — to be reckoned as time already served in pre-sentence detention — and placed on an 18-month community corrections order, and fined $750 for the text messages.
Thompson was sentenced to 171 days in custody, to be reckoned as time already served in pre-sentence custody, and an 18-month community corrections order.
Mr Lock was placed on an 18-month community corrections order, which includes 150 hours of community work, with up to 75 hours of this able to be used for drug and alcohol or mental health rehabilitation and treatment appointments.
Ms Lock was placed on a two-year community corrections order, including 200 hours of community work, with half of that able to be used for any drug or mental health treatment.