Man accused of vandalising EV charging stations refused bail

Sat 11 Jul 2026 at 1:48pm

Sat 11 Jul 2026 at 1:48pm

In short:

A man has been refused bail after he was charged with damaging EV charging stations in the NSW Central Coast and Newcastle regions.

Dylan Hyland, 29, is accused of stealing copper cables from the chargers.

What's next?

The matter is due to return to court on Wednesday.

A man has been refused bail after being charged with damaging EV charging stations across the NSW Central Coast and Newcastle regions.

Dylan Hyland, 29, was arrested in the Lake Macquarie suburb of Kahibah, after police seized 17 EV charging plugs, large bags filled with stripped cables, cutting tools and a taser.

A vehicle allegedly used in the incidents was also seized.

Mr Hyland is facing a total of 26 charges relating to damage to multiple charging stations between June 12 and June 30, at locations including Gosford, Erina, Tuggerah, Newcastle, Hamilton, Swansea and Raymond Terrace.

Defence lawyer Danka Durovic made a formal application for Mr Hyland's release.

But police prosecutor Simon Steward said the case against Mr Hyland was strong and opposed bail.

"There's a distinctive white Ford Ranger truck that's been located nearby or at the sites of where the copper cables or infrastructure have been damaged and then taken," Mr Steward said.

"It would appear there is a similar sort of offending at each of those sites, where the cables have been removed and then transported away in that Ford Ranger."

Mr Steward argued Mr Hyland's release would endanger the community and that there was a significant risk of serious offending.

Ms Durovic told the court Mr Hyland had connections with his community, was a practising Jehovah's Witness and attended church services on Tuesday night.

She said Mr Hyland would accept any bail conditions imposed by the court, including that he not go within 100 metres of an EV charging station.

Mr Hyland also addressed the court directly, pleading for his release from custody.

"I'll do whatever it takes," he said.

"I'm not a bad person. I can provide video of other people using my car, it's not me.

"I was supposed to have knee surgery today."

Bail was formally refused, and the matter was adjourned until Wednesday.