A man who squatted in an army depot for two days and posed as a field marshal has been jailed for almost two years.
Reece Joshua Sturgeon, 42, was sentenced to 21 months in prison in Western Australia’s Kununurra District Court on Friday on charges of robbery and theft of a motor vehicle.
The Perth man broke into the North West Mobile Force (NORFORCE) depot in the state’s north and posed as a senior official in February.
He accessed a safe and used the key inside to enter the administrative building where he stayed for two days, drinking rum and eating in the kitchen, the alphabet reported.
Sturgeon was also in uniform and moved a car to a car wash during her stay.
When confronted by a member of the Australian Defense Force, Sturgeon identified himself as a field marshal “on a very special mission”.
Sturgeon represented himself at Kununurra Magistrates Court when he pleaded guilty to five charges on March 1.
Three of the charges were later dropped and Sturgeon was refused bail because she had a criminal record.
Reece Joshua Sturgeon, 42, was sentenced to 21 months in prison for breaking into and camping out at a military depot in WA (pictured Sturgeon previously dressed as The Joker)
Sturgeon gained access to the North West Mobile Force (NORFORCE) depot (pictured) where she posed as a field marshal “on a very special mission” in February.
Sturgeon’s lawyer, Justine Fisher, told the court her client had walked 1,043 kilometers from Broome to Kununurra with her pregnant dog on a “spiritual journey” before becoming trapped in the rain near the depot. reports the ABC.
Fisher said the sudden rain forced him into the warehouse.
“(Sturgeon) seems to get into trouble quite spontaneously,” Ms Fisher told the court.
He added that although Sturgeon had “unconventional and unorthodox views”, she had never been diagnosed or hospitalized for mental health problems.
Sturgeon did not steal anything from the warehouse during her stay and said her intention was only to speak to warehouse staff about “targets and sustainability”.
Fisher said Sturgeon was remorseful for what she had done and intended to return to Perth to live with her parents.
Sturgeon had previously appeared in court dressed as The Joker when she spray-painted a CCTV camera in 2020.
Judge Alan Troy said the facts were “somewhat strange” but there must have been some “sophistication at play” for Sturgeon to enter the correct safe deposit box PIN.
Sturgeon will be eligible for parole in 10 months, given the time she has already served.
Sturgeon was convicted of manslaughter after plowing his car into a group of teenagers walking on Scarborough beach in Perth in 2006.
Yuan Zheng Feng, 17, died in the accident.
Sturgeon next faced court dressed as The Joker when he was accused of spray-painting a CCTV camera as part of a ‘street performance’ in 2020.
Sturgeon later claimed that the incident was a misunderstanding and that she was simply creating performance art.
“I think everyone is going to sleep well tonight, especially me,” he said.
When asked why he was dressed as the villain from the DC comics, he denied knowing who the character was.
“Who is the Joker?” he asked.