July 17, 2014

A man who admitted driving the getaway car in an attempted armed hold-up at Kingaroy’s McDonald’s Restaurant will serve a minimum four months behind bars.

Jaydon Nichols, 20, pleaded guilty in the District Court in Kingaroy this morning to one charge of attempted armed robbery.

Crown Prosecutor Sandra Cupina said Nichols had supplied the balaclava, gloves and knife that were used in the attempted robbery as well as driving the getaway car.

The incident occurred on December 9 last year.

Nichols’ co-offender, Benjamin Roy O’Hanlon Clarke, 27, was sentenced to four years jail in April over the same offence; he will be eligible for parole on February 9, 2017.

Nichols was on probation at the time of the attempted robbery after pleading guilty just three months earlier to another incident at the same McDonald’s store.

In September 2013, Nichols was ordered in the Kingaroy Magistrates Court to perform 60 hours community service and placed on a nine-month probation order after pleading guilty to wilful damage and public nuisance charges.

In the earlier incident, Nichols had been at the restaurant with two friends when one of the people in the group threw a burger onto the ground. When the manager asked the group to leave, Nichols started swearing and picked up a chair and threw it at an electronic screen, causing $720 worth of damage.

Ms Cupina said Nichols was intoxicated during the first offence, and was also heavily intoxicated on the night the attempted robbery occurred.

However, the second event was not “spontaneous” and there had been a level of planning.

During the robbery attempt, Nichols remained in the car while Clarke entered the store and demanded money from a female staff member while tapping the knife on a monitor on the counter.

When the woman said she could not access the cash, Clarke turned and fled from the store, rejoining Nichols at a pre-determined spot where he had parked the car.

A victim impact statement from the McDonald’s employee was tendered as evidence. She said he had been fearful during the offence and fear had continued to affect every aspect of her life for a month or more afterwards.

Ms Cupina said to Nichols’ credit, he had been “a star pupil” on probation, completing his 60 hours community service in just nine days. He was also still young, had made full admissions and had assisted police.

Barrister Steve Crofton, for Nichols, urged Judge Gary Long to order immediate parole.

“Mr Nichols fell in with a bad crowd, one of which was his co-accused Benjamin Clarke. He didn’t know Mr Clarke that well but on the night became very intoxicated. When they ran out of alcohol, Clarke suggested they do an armed robbery to get money for more alcohol,” Mr Crofton said.

Judge Long agreed that Nichols’ culpability had been significantly lower than Clarke’s but said Nichols had provided his co-offender with the means to commit the offence.

He told Nichols it was a serious offence and the target was vulnerable.

“There has to be a deterrent effect in the community generally and specifically for you as well,” he said.

He sentenced Nichols to two years’ jail but set a parole release date of November 17.

Judge Long suggested to Nichols that he spend the time in jail reflecting on his involvement in the offence, and make plans to avoid such involvement in the future.