4 weeks ago
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February 2, 2026 — 2:04pm
The accused Pam the Bird vandal has pleaded not guilty to allegations he caused $700,000 in damage with the distinctive cartoon graffiti and had his case fast-tracked to a higher court.
Jack Gibson-Burrell, 22, arrived at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday dressed in suit pants, red Lightning McQueen crocs and carrying a two-wheel skateboard, known as a ripstick waveboard.
Defence lawyer Micky Milardovic told the court his client no longer wished to test the evidence against him in a preliminary hearing and would instead be fighting the 209 charges in the County Court.
Gibson-Burrell faces charges including multiple counts of reckless conduct endangering life and serious injury, public nuisance, car theft, burglary and aggravated burglary.
Police allege he is the sole person behind the “Pam the Bird” tags visible across Melbourne and Geelong, making him allegedly one of Australia’s most prolific graffiti vandals.
He is accused of graffitiing property and buildings, including trams, the Novotel Melbourne South Wharf hotel, the Channel Nine building in Docklands, the “cheese stick” column on CityLink, and Flinders Street Station.
He faces separate charges that he allegedly stole a car from Victoria’s Surf Coast in December 2024 and used it to ram the front doors of a Nando’s outlet in Footscray, with the message “we don’t accept cash here” and “Nando dogs” spray-painted on the white Volkswagen.
Gibson-Burrell is also charged with intentionally causing injury after allegedly stabbing a man with a kitchen knife, and charged over an earlier unprovoked attack on an Emporium store worker.
Gibson-Burrell, formerly of Yarraville, was bailed in February last year to work at a Geelong painting company and live with his grandmother, a former security guard.
On Monday, he appeared in court, and the hearing was delayed slightly while the charges, laid in three separate stages, were correctly numbered.
“There is a lot. Two hundred and nine in total,” magistrate Michelle Mykytowycz said.
Once the charges were addressed, the magistrate told the accused graffiti vandal she was satisfied the evidence was of sufficient weight that a jury could convict him, and ordered he stand trial in the County Court.
“Mr Gibson-Burrell, do you plead guilty or not guilty?” the magistrate asked.
“Not guilty,” the accused replied.
Mykytowycz said Gibson-Burrell’s bail conditions would remain, including a $30,000 surety, reporting to police, a ban on leaving Victoria, and orders that he contact witnesses or associate with any co-accused.
He must also comply with a nightly curfew at his Geelong address, not possess abseiling or graffiti-related items and only use one mobile phone, which he must unlock on request for police.
Gibson-Burrell is expected to return to court in March.
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