Driver pleads guilty after crashing car into home causing $180k damage
A man who crashed through a power pole, snapping it in half, before smashing into a home has pleaded guilty to multiple driving offences.
Paul Jenkins, 40, has pleaded guilty in Mildura Magistrates Court to multiple charges following a car crash that caused approximately $180,000 worth of damage in Victoria's north-west. The incident occurred on Game Street, Merbein, on May 11, when Jenkins crashed his vehicle through a power pole and into a home, narrowly missing a 70-year-old man who was sleeping in the room.
An unlicensed driver, Jenkins will undergo a psychological assessment before sentencing. Jenkins was arrested on June 22 for further driving offenses. The court heard Jenkins believed his vehicle's steering arm had broken before the crash, but his estimated speed was not disclosed. Jenkins also pleaded guilty to a separate incident where he chased a female driver at high speeds before crashing his car into her vehicle in the Murray River.
His lawyer stated that Jenkins fled the scene because he knew he was unlicensed and was in a panicked state. The court agreed that jail time with a non-parole period would be an appropriate sentence.
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