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Mandurah court: mother uses false name at police stations

Staff writerMandurah Coastal Times

A MOTHER who won “big money at the casino” used a stolen driver’s licence and a false name to buy a car with her winnings.

Rachel Grace Williams (26) pleaded guilty to attempting to obtain property from a person by fraud, two counts of obtaining property from a person by fraud and possessing stolen or unlawfully obtained property when she appeared in Mandurah Magistrates Court today .

Police prosecutor Constable Sean Discombe said Williams purchased the Ford Falcon car at Derossa’s T.M used cars wholesaler with a stolen driver’s licence and gave misrepresenting details of another woman on June 15, 2016.

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Police said Williams filled out an application form at Midland Police Station to release the vehicle. In the forms, Williams provided details from the stolen licence and a woman’s name other than her own on October 12, 2016.

Const Discombe said Williams was pulled over by the police in December 2017 while driving the Ford Falcon and went to Armadale Police Station on February 10, 2017 to fill out a vehicle recovery form. Police said Williams again provided the wrong details and the name of another woman.

She was charged after this incident and made a full admission to police in relation to offences.

The incidents totalled $109 in costs.

Duty lawyer Matthew Davey said a pre-sentenced report and two reference letters for Williams were provided to Magistrate Vivien Edwards. Mr Davey also made a request on behalf of Williams for a spent conviction.

Magistrate Edwards said the offences were of an “ongoing dishonest nature”.

Defence said the person Williams was seeing at the time of the offences gave her the stolen licence.

Mr Davey said the mother-of-one had won a large sum of money at the casino previous to her offending – enough to buy a car, but needed a drivers licence to make the purchase.

“It’s a strange bet of circumstances where she’s landed big money but no licence,” Magistrate Edwards said to Williams.

Defence said Williams had a clean record from the past 12-months and plans to reapply for a licence permit as she was “unlikely to reoffend because of her motivation to stay clean”.

Mr Davey said Williams was worried the offences would impact her ambitions to be a real estate agent and hoped she would be granted a spent conviction.

Prosecuting officer Discombe said Williams had “represented herself falsely and gained benefits”, so the nature of the offences wouldn’t classify for a spent conviction.

Magistrate Edwards said based on the pre-sentenced order, she sentenced Williams with a nine-month community based order with program and supervision requirements.

She refused to grant Williams a spent conviction order.

“I’m sorry I’m not able to grant you a spent conviction on these offences as they are too serious and continued over a period of time,” she said.

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