Serial thief given suspended prison sentence

A 25-year-old man convicted of stealing and traffic offences has been handed a nine-month suspended jail sentence in Broome Magistrates’ Court.

Appearing in court via videolink from West Kimberley Regional Prison on Monday, Davin Kane Bidd, of Mowanjum, faced multiple charges including drink driving, burglary, stealing and possession of stolen or unlawfully obtained property.

The most recent charges dated back to late February, when he stole a Toyota Camry, cigarettes, a mobile phone, a utility locator, an LCD television, an Xbox One, a laptop and two Telstra TV boxes all within one week.

The court heard Bidd’s criminal record dated back to 2009 and had previously been placed on community service orders, where he was non-compliant.

Bidd’s lawyer Paul Tobin said his client had a significant alcohol problem from a young age, stemming back to witnessing alcohol fuelled violence between his parents.

In sentencing, Magistrate Elizabeth Langdon told Bidd that as a young adult, he needed to start taking responsibility for his actions, stressing that he will end up back in jail if he doesn’t change his ways.

Along with the suspended prison sentence, Bidd was issued a $600 fine and was disqualified from driving for 10 months.