Harley Darren Hinkley gets more jail time for smuggling drugs into Hakea Prison, smashing cell, inmate assault

A Perth man who smuggled internally concealed drugs and syringes into a prison, stabbed another inmate in the neck with a pen and caused more than $5000 of damage to his cell has been given more jail time. Harley Darren Hinkley appeared in Albany Magistrates Court on Thursday via video link from Hakea Prison, facing charges of criminal damage, possession of cannabis with intent to sell or supply, conveying an unauthorised article into a prison, assault causing bodily harm, breach of bail and speeding. The 32-year-old had pleaded guilty to all but one of the charges on December 16, admitting to the criminal damage offence on Thursday. The drug smuggling and intent charges stemmed from August 10, 2024, when Hinkley admitted to having “some weed” hidden internally when he was taken into Hakea Prison. After spending two days in solitary confinement, Hinkley handed over the package that was found to contain 3g of cannabis, nine syringes and nine lactose tablets. Four months later, on November 2, Hinkley was incarcerated at Albany Regional Prison when, after being unable to reach his family during his allotted phone call, he began throwing items at the windows of his cell until the glass smashed and kicked the toilet until it broke. He caused $5230.40 worth of damage to the cell. On November 13, Hinkley approached a fellow inmate in the Albany prison’s day room, picked up a kettle full of hot water and threw it at him unprovoked, causing immediate pain and scalding to the inmate’s torso and legs. When the victim asked why he had done that, Hinkley punched him in the head before stabbing him twice with a pen, once in the neck and once in the lip, and punching him about 10 times. The victim, who was not known to Hinkley, suffered bleeding and puncture wounds. Hinkley was also charged with driving at 88km/h on a Port Kennedy road marked 70km/h in June and breaching his bail by failing to appear at Armadale Magistrates Court in August. Defence lawyer Neville Barber said Hinkley was sentenced to four years imprisonment in District Court on May 22 for committing criminal damage by fire at Hakea Prison and stabbing someone in the shoulder. Mr Barber said his client, who has 90 prior criminal charges, has a “very difficult background” that includes drugs, untreated ADHD and unresolved childhood trauma. Police prosecutor Sgt Gary Simpson said many of the charges showed a level of premeditation, including the smuggling of the drugs and syringes into the prison and the assault. “The introduction of drugs into prisons has potential to jeopardise prisons, but the unprovoked assault on the fellow inmates . . . this is specifically vicious, and again shows some pre-planning, as the accused came armed with a pen,” he said. Magistrate Erin O’Donnell sentenced Hinkley to an additional nine months jail time and fined him $900.