ACT Magistrates Court grants Fasil Jember bail on driving charges

Unemployed 31-year-old man Fasil Jember, of no fixed abode, was granted bail when he faced the ACT Magistrates Court on Thursday, wearing bright pink runners.

He faces six charges, including car theft, driving a stolen vehicle and driving while disqualified. It was unclear whether he had entered pleas to those charges.

The court heard he had pleaded guilty to a separate driving while disqualified charge and failing to appear after a bail undertaking.

Jember pleaded not guilty to a fresh charge of possessing proceeds of crime, in the form of an orange Volkswagen T-Cross.

Prosecutor Colin Balog said this charge had been laid as a back-up to other allegations.

Police documents, tendered in court, show Jember was disqualified in November 2022 from driving for 12 months.

About six weeks later, Jember allegedly refused to return the Volkswagen to its owner, who had originally loaned it to someone else.

The owner subsequently reported the vehicle as stolen.

According to the police documents, the Volkswagen was captured on CCTV outside the O'Connor IGA about 10.30pm on January 5.

The car was said to have letterbox numbers over the top of the original number plate.

Police allege Jember was captured exiting the car, walking into IGA and buying several items.

A short time later, police say they attended the supermarket and reviewed the footage to determine Jember's identity.

"Police conducted further checks which revealed [Jember] to be a repeat offender for driving while disqualified, and the Volkswagen to be a current outstanding stolen vehicle," documents say.

More than two weeks later, police spotted Jember walking in the city and arrested him.

In a separate incident, on the same day he was granted bail in April, Jember has admitted driving while disqualified in a white Toyota Kluger, which had also been reported as stolen.

The other offence Jember has admitted is one of failing to front court in June, when a bail undertaking had required him to appear.

He was later granted bail again, only to have it revoked last Tuesday after a breach.

READ MORE

On Thursday, Jember's lawyer, Mitchell Greig, argued for his client to be granted bail again with a condition described as effective house arrest.

Mr Balog did not oppose bail and said the bail conditions requested by Jember would "remove the likelihood of offending while on bail".

Special magistrate Rebecca Christensen granted bail, agreeing the condition tantamount to house arrest would ameliorate the likelihood of Jember committing more crimes.

Jember is due to return to court on November 28.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: