Father of five sentenced to time served for drug-fuelled assault and theft
Bradley Kennedy was sentenced to time served for drug-fuelled assault, theft and fraud.
Bradley Kennedy used a stolen debit card to spend over $100 at service stations in Echuca on August 24, 2024. An unknown offender had smashed through an 88-year-old's bedroom window to steal it.
Two weeks later, Kennedy punched a woman. Kennedy grabbed her by the hair and told her to leave an undisclosed address.
When arrested, he was found carrying a knuckle duster and a folding knife. Kennedy is a father of five.
He had a "fairly serious habit for ice", his lawyer told Bendigo Magistrates' Court. This habit influenced all his crimes.
Kennedy had already served 284 days in custody before being sentenced on September 11. Magistrate Russell Kelly imposed 120 days' jail, counted as time served.
There were 164 days of unaccounted-for time noted as "Renzella time" for possible future sentencing.
- Over $100 spent at service stations
- Debit card theft
- September 12, 2024
- Assault date
- 284 days
- Pre-sentence custody
- 120 days (time served)
- Sentence imposed
Why it mattersThe case shows how methamphetamine addiction drives a chain of crimes from theft to violence. It also shows how courts manage sentences when accused have already spent significant time in custody.
AustraliaIn regional Victoria, this illustrates the impact of ice-fuelled crime on vulnerable elderly people and the court process for managing complex offending linked to drug use.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 9 d ago
