An Ashford man has fronted Inverell Local Court after he was involved in an accident while driving a stolen tip truck.
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Kyle Peter John White, 22, was charged with taking and driving a vehicle without consent, and two counts of driving whilst disqualified following an accident in St Georges Basin.
White also faced charges on Thursday following an unrelated police chase in May. They included driving while disqualified, engaging in a police pursuit and drink-driving with a mid-range blood-alcohol limit.
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After the 900-metre chase, he told officers he didn't have a license because "I don't like the police".
In March, White took a tip truck "for a drive" and was involved in an accident on The Wool Road in St Georges Basin.
A short time later, he returned in a ute and began speaking to people including RFS members, without revealing his involvement.
The RFS raised their suspicions to the police, but White denied any involvement.
But during their investigation, police were informed - by a passenger in the truck White had stolen - that White had taken the tip truck and had been in the accident.
They were also told the ute he'd used to return to the scene a short time later was not his. Checks revealed his driver's license was suspended, and he had never held a heavy vehicle license.
He then confessed in a police interview.
Magistrate Holly Kemp called the incident "alarming and strange", and his solicitor Sue Daiken was unable to provide an explanation as to why he did what he did.
"He says he just decided to take the truck for a drive," she said.
He had also told her he was "unaware" he was being followed by police in May.
"Up until today he's felt as if there was a forcefield around him," she said, adding that he now "s**** himself" knowing what could have happened as a result of his actions.
White has now moved to Ashford to be the carer for his father, medical records tendered to court outlined, with his father writing a letter saying he'd locked away the keys to his car in a safe and away from White.
Magistrate Kemp said it was only because of his early pleas of guilty that he was not going behind bars.
She convicted him for taking the truck, placing him on a 10-month intensive corrections order with 50 hours of community service. For both counts of driving while disqualified, he was convicted, fined two lots of $400 and disqualified for six months for each.
He was convicted of the police pursuit, placed on a supervised intensive corrections order (ICO) for 10 months for the chase, disqualified for 12 months, and was ordered to undertake programs for alcohol and complete the traffic offender's program.
For the drink-driving, he was disqualified for 12 months and placed on an 10-month ICO, with an interlock exemption. He was ordered to abstain from alcohol for three months.
He was then fined $600 and disqualified for a further six months for the disqualified driving.
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