A man charged with 24 offences after police found plaques stolen from Mandurah cemetery and war memorial was released on a community-based order on Friday.
Brenden Joseph Chuck pleaded guilty at an earlier appearance to the charges of possession of stolen or unlawfully obtained property.
He had also previously pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
The court heard police executed a search warrant on Chuck’s Eacott Street property on February 16.
During the search they found the plaques as well as a bag full of soccer balls belonging to Mandurah City Soccer Club.
Counsel for Chuck said her client had found the plaques, some of them commemorating ex-servicemen and children, in a skip bin.
Magistrate Jennifer Hawkins asked if that was plausible.
“Who’s going to throw away cemetery plaques,” she asked.
Chuck’s lawyer said her client had been collecting similar items for several years, in a habit the magistrate said bordered on an “obsession”.
Magistrate Hawkins placed Chuck on a 12-month order with program and supervision requirements.
He was ordered to pay costs, but not reparation, as he had not been charged with stealing the plaques.
