Tradie, 24, who stole a woman’s handbag at a popular tourist bar in Bali before being caught and beaten by locals is jailed
- Australian carpenter accused of snatching woman’s bag in Bali has been jailed
- Matthew Woods stole the woman’s bag from a popular Bali beach bar in June
- He was chased down and beaten by locals before he was arrested and charged
- Despite maintaining his innocence Woods was sentenced to four months jail
An Australian tradesman who stole a woman’s handbag while in Bali before being chased down and beaten by locals has been jailed.
Gold Coast carpenter Matthew Richards Woods, 24, was charged after he snatched a Canadian tourist’s bag in Bali in June near the Pretty Poison bar in Canggu, 7 News reported.
Woods was chased down by a group of local Balinese who then beat him before he was arrested.
Australian tradesman Matthew Richards Woods, who stole a woman’s handbag while overseas before being chased down and beaten by locals, has been jailed for four months
Woods, 24, was charged after he snatched a Canadian tourist’s bag in Bali in June near the Pretty Poison bar in Canggu (pictured)
Appearing in a Bali court on Thursday Woods was found guilty of the charges and sentenced to four months jail.
He is expected to be freed within weeks.
Despite his conviction Woods has maintained his innocence, and his defence team objected to the victim impact statement in court.
The Canadian tourist, who other witnesses testified was drunk at the time, was the only one who saw Woods take the bag.
‘We as the lawyers, see that the prosecutor cannot prove the indictment at the court. The defendant could not be found guilty of committing theft as mentioned in the indictment. The defendant should be freed from the prosecutor’s indictment and freed from all lawsuits,’ his defence lawyer said.
Woods maintained his innocence after he his conviction and said he was hoping to go ‘straight back to Oz’ after serving his sentence.
‘Yeah happy, still not guilty but happy… Good country. Just law, not good,’ he said.
Despite his conviction Woods has maintained his innocence but will likely be free within weeks before returning home to Australia