Cedric Arthur Thomas Morgan sent to jail for string of Bathurst charges

Cedric Arthur Thomas Morgan of Greville Place, Kelso was sentenced to six months in jail by Magistrate D Pearce after he pleaded guilty in Bathurst Local Court on May 10, 2023 to:

According to court documents, police were doing patrols of the Glenroi area in Orange when they saw Morgan walking along Adina Crescent about 3.10am on January 13, 2023.

Morgan, who police believed to be nervous, gave a fake name to officers and said he was staying at a relative's home, but could not give specific details.

When speaking with Morgan, police asked what was in the bag he was carrying when he pulled out a pair of black gloves.

"They're my cousin's, he took me up here to this house," Morgan said to police, court documents note.

Police then went to do a search of Morgan when he pulled out a clear plastic resealable bag and threw it on the ground at the feet of officers.

"I found that on the ground ... It's a bullet I think," Morgan said.

He was asked once again for his name and information before he was allowed to leave pending further investigation.

Police went back to the station in Orange and had the bullet forensically examined, which showed traces of Morgan's DNA.

During an interview with police after he was arrested in Bathurst on March 15 for an unrelated matter, he said he was trying to hide himself and picked up the bullet because he "thought it was cool".

On a separate occasion, Morgan was walking along Albert Street in Bathurst about 10.45pm on March 2, 2023 when he came across a person's vehicle that had been parked at the intersection with Rankin Street.

Court documents state Morgan threw a metal key barrel at the window while he screamed and yelled, which caught the attention of neighbours.

Morgan began to walk away when the victim, who owned the car, and a number of witnesses spotted him.

When police arrived, a witness gave officers a description of Morgan who was wearing a dark jacket and track pants, and was carrying a black bag.

Police could hear Morgan yelling and screaming as he made his way along Browning Street, before they went and stopped him at the park on Research Station Drive.

He was arrested while an ambulance was called to assess Morgan.

On March 15, police were called to Alfred Street in South Bathurst about 7.30am following reports a man was walking around with a machete.

Officers arrived and saw Morgan walking towards a home with his hands in his jumper, holding the weapon.

He was asked to drop the machete by police, who then took hold of him to keep those in the area safe.

He was once again asked for a name and gave one that belonged to someone else, before he told police he was carrying the knife, he claimed to have found, for protection.

Morgan was given a court attendance notice in the name of the wrong person as a result of the fake name and a move on direction.

The court was told police were doing unrelated duties when they saw the man whose name Morgan gave to police, when he explained he was a relative.

About 12.30pm on the same day, police were going to an unrelated break and enter when they saw Morgan.

He went to run away from police, who tried to search him, but officers swept his legs and handcuffed him on the ground.

They then searched Morgan and found a pair of garden gloves which were suspected of being stolen, before he was arrested and taken to Bathurst Police Station.

Aboriginal Legal Service solicitor Ms Chui told the court during sentencing her client - who is a diagnosed schizophrenic - was not getting his "depo injections" and had been on 'ice' at the time of offending.

"He was hearing things ... he thought there was something there," Ms Chui said of her client, who appeared in court by audio-visual link from jail.

"He wants to get his life back on track."

Magistrate D Pearce took into consideration the fact Morgan was on an intensive correction order at the time of the charges, which ultimately aggravated the matter.

"He's a danger to the community," Mr Pearce said.

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