A WODONGA youth involved in a series of break and enter offences in Albury — one of which left a damage bill of up to $20,000 — is the master of his own destiny for the next seven months.
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Magistrate Tony Murray made that clear when sentencing the youth in Albury Children’s Court to a suspended control order.
Mr Murray said he does not make idle threats, but any breach of conditions in the order would see the youth taken into custody.
The youth, who recently turned 14, was sentenced on eight charges.
They included three counts of aggravated break and enter, committing a serious indictable offence in company, and break and enter a dwelling causing damage.
Mr Murray said a report prepared by the Juvenile Justice Service on the youth was “a bad one”.
“It does not auger well for your future,” he said.
When told about the impact of his break-ins, the youth said: “I don’t give a stuff”.
Mr Murray said the youth had a cavalier attitude towards other people in the community.
He was with three other youths when they went to a house in Matra Place at North Albury on October 20.
They opened a closed, but unlocked front door and began smashing windows and putting holes in plasterboard.
The group smashed 13 windows and put 27 holes in plasterboard for an estimated damage bill of $15,000 to $20,000.
They then decided to break into the North Albury Sports Club to get alcohol.
An alarm was activated at the sports club at 11.26pm and several bottles of spirits were taken.
They went back to the house and drank the alcohol while continuing to cause damage.
Earlier in the day, the group had broken into the IGA supermarket at Springdale Heights.
Three 700 millilitres bottles of rum and a 700 millilitres bottle of wild turkey were stolen and were consumed in a nearby park.
An estimated $800 to $1000 damage was caused to the store’s front sliding doors.