South West man jailed for threatening police with an axe and stealing spree

A 42-year-old man will spend more time behind bars after a spree of offending which saw him threaten police with an axe. Jerry James Doolan appeared in the Busselton Magistrates Court by video link from Bunbury Regional Prision on Tuesday, where he was sentenced for multiple charges including four counts of stealing, two charges of burglary and one charge of being armed. The prosecution told the court Doolan was riding his bicycle west on Caves Road in Anniebrook about 12.30am on November 27 last year when a marked police car noticed him. Officers attempted to stop him before he pulled out an axe and ran towards police with it above his head. Doolan’s explanation following the event was “I didn’t know you were cops”. The incident followed multiple instances of offending in the days prior. The court was told at 11.35am on November 22, Doolan entered the Margaret River Bunnings store and headed to the power tools section before loading two items into his trolley. He then went to the garden section and threw the items over the store’s fence before later collecting them. Three days later at about 1.40am, he forced entry into Tuxedo Formal Suit Hire and Retail in Busselton and unsuccessful tried to gain entry to a register before fleeing with cufflinks and vinyl records. Doolan also forced entry into nearby A.C. Foster & Son about the same time, gathering about $10,000 worth of goods and throwing some of them over a fence to collect. The next day, he rode up to a property in Quindalup and went to the back of the property after he was unable to gain access from the front. He was confronted by a neighbour and left. About 3pm on November 27, he and two others walked into OPSM Busselton, where he swapped his sunglasses with a pair from the store valued at more than $200 before leaving. Doolan’s lawyer told the court the axe mentioned by police was a tomahawk his client had found and the Quindalup property he trespassed on was a friend’s place, but he accepts responsibility for all of the offending. The prosecutor drew similarities between the November 27 axe incident and the circumstances leading to a 16-year-old boy being shot dead in Willetton on Saturday. “That situation was very dangerous for him and the officers,” she said. Magistrate Joanne Andretich said Doolan had a serious record and highlighted the risk of him being armed while targeting police. “They may have been put in a position where they have to draw a weapon,” she said. He was sentenced to 12 months behind bars and fined $1250. He was also ordered to pay $141.50 in costs.