Police Snapshot Legal Matters

Oxley Park: Man to front court after replica pistol, knife found in car

A man has been charged after possessing prohibited weapons in Oxley Park.

About 11.25am on Tuesday, March 14, police stopped a vehicle on the Great Western Highway, Oxley Park which was being driven by a 44-year-old Oxley Park man.

The man and the vehicle were searched, and a suspected replica Glock Pistol and a suspected flick style knife were located.

He was arrested and taken to Penrith Police Station before being charged.

The man will front Penrith Local Court on Thursday, April 27.

St Marys: Man charged over multiple shoplifting offences

A man has charged after he shoplifted multiple times in St Marys.

An ongoing investigation by Nepean PAC identified a 27-year-old St Marys man in relation to seven offences of shoplifting between January and February 2023.

The man was targeting supermarkets and bottle shops in St Marys where he would conceal items in shopping bags or simply take products off the shelves and walk out.

On Thursday, March 16, police attended the man’s residence and arrested him.

He was taken to Penrith Police Station where he was charged and will appear in Penrith Local Court on Wednesday, April 5.

St Marys: Trio facing potential jail term after neighbourhood dispute

Three people will face court for ‘affray’ after a fight in St Marys.

About 8.50pm on Wednesday, March 15, an argument occurred between neighbours at a townhouse complex on Saddington Street, St Marys.

A 34-year-old woman, a 38-year-old man, and 37-year-old man were involved when the woman threw a drink and smashed a glass over the head of one of the men while the other man threw punches at him.

The 37-year-old man armed himself with a stick and struck the woman over the head with it.

Police were called and on arrival several injuries had occurred requiring medical treatment.

They will all attend Penrith Local Court on Thursday, April 27.

The crime of ‘affray’ carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment at District Court.

Kingswood: Ivanhoe man busted during break and enter

A man has been charged after a break and enter in Kingswood.

About 10.55pm on Thursday, March 16, police were patrolling the Kingswood area and saw a man lifting a garage door along Rodgers Street, Kingswood.

When the man saw police, he started running.

A foot pursuit occurred, and the man was able to escape but was later located at Kingswood Railway Station.

The man was arrested and swung a punch at an officer, which missed.

He was identified as a 34-year-old Ivanhoe man. Police found a watch and headphones in his possession that were suspected as stolen, along with a black face mask.

The man was taken to Penrith Police Station where he was charged and he will appear in Penrith Local Court on Friday, May 5.

Kingswood: Car flips, and breath test reveals a concerning factor

A man has been charged after a serious motor vehicle collision in Kingswood last weekend.

About 11.30pm on Sunday, March 19, a silver Hyundai sedan was being driven by a 22-year-old Erskine Park man and a 23-yearold Riverstone woman was his passenger.

The Hyundai was travelling east along Jamison Road, Kingswood when it travelled through a stop sign, mounted the gutter, and collided with a reinforced concrete and brick retaining wall.

The collision caused the vehicle to become airborne and flip, landing on its roof.

Both occupants were uninjured in the crash and were able to exit and walk away from the vehicle.

Emergency services arrived and the woman required medical treatment, but became aggressive, pushing officers and spitting on them.

The man returned a positive result for a roadside breath test and was arrested for the purpose of a breath analysis, which later returned a result of 0.117 grams of alcohol in 210 litres of breath.

He was also driving whilst disqualified and was charged with several related offences.

The man was set to appear at Penrith Local Court on Thursday, March 23 and a future Court Attendance Notice was prepared for the woman who assaulted police.

We often get calls, particularly from first home buyers, in a bit of fluster about what steps need to be taken after they have made an offer to purchase a property that has been accepted.

The usual cause for concern is that once an offer is made and accepted, it most cases in NSW the Real Estate Agent will request the buyer to pay a 0.25 per cent deposit and sign a Contract.

Most of the time a buyer will not have had an opportunity to discuss the Contract with their lawyer prior, so it can cause some stress or concern.

The reality is that the vast majority of property purchases in NSW occur this way. This is because in relation to the purchase of residential property, buyers are entitled to an automatic five day cooling off period during which they can withdraw from a purchase after Contracts are exchanged.

Exchanging Contracts is the process of paying the 0.25 per cent deposit, each party signing the Contract and the Contracts being dated, at which time the Contracts become binding.

In other words, buyers have the protection of a cooling off period during which they can withdraw from the purchase if they want to, so in most cases buyers will sign the Contract with the Real Estate Agent, pay the deposit, and then set about their due diligence, including reviewing the Contract with their lawyer during the cooling off period.

It is important to remember however that if you purchase property this way you will lose your 0.25 per cent deposit if you decide not to proceed with the purchase. The reason for this is that during your cooling off period the seller is not at liberty to sell the property to anybody else, even if someone offers a higher price. You can however withdraw from the purchase for any reason. The quid quo pro is that if you decide to pull out, meaning that the seller has potentially lost the opportunity to sell the property to somebody else, the seller gets to keep your 0.25 per cent deposit.

In most cases, the statutory five day cooling off period gets extended to 10 days. These are working days and do not include weekends, so if you have a five day cooling off period, this is actually one week. If you have a 10 day