Two Canberra bikies have been jailed over a violent home invasion that put an Oaks Estate man in hospital with a broken leg and ribs.
Five assailants — David Micheal Evans, 34, Dean Stephen Reid, 32, Norman Collier, 26, Joshua Watson, 35, and Sharon Stott, 57 — all pleaded guilty in the ACT Supreme Court to the attack on January 10 last year.
The court heard Reid stormed the home and took a knife from the victim before holding it to the man’s throat and making a number of threats.
Key points:
Five people have been sentenced over a violent bikie-related incident in Oaks Estate last year.
The victim was hospitalised with a broken leg after being attacked and threatened with a knife
While sentencing two men to jail today, the judge urged the pair to break the cycle of drug abuse
Evans then picked up an electric guitar and struck the man repeatedly in the leg, before dropping a speaker onto him.
The group then left, with Stott stealing a gun, Collier taking a laptop, and Evans leaving with two phones.
The incident lasted about 21 minutes. The victim was hospitalised with broken ribs, two knife wounds, and a broken leg that required surgery to fix.
The court heard Reid also returned to the man’s home later and stole his car. One assailant, with connections to the Rebels and Satudarah gangs, later visited the victim in hospital to convince him not to speak to police.(Supplied)
Attacker visited victim at hospital bed after incident
The victim reported the attack to police, but was visited by Reid in his hospital bed with the offer to get his car back if he dropped his statement.
The court heard Reid’s shoes may have still had the victim’s blood on them when he was arrested on January 25.
A search of his house uncovered outlaw motorcycle club paraphernalia, including Rebels gear and a Satudarah vest with “president” written on it.
The group of five were set to face trial in November last year but instead pleaded guilty to a number of different offences.
Reid pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery, car theft, and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Evans pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery.
Both were sentenced in the Supreme Court on Monday. Gang paraphernalia was found at Reid’s home related to the Rebels and Satudarah clubs.(AAP: Dean Lewins)The court heard both men had suffered difficult childhoods and struggled with drug abuse as adults.
But Justice Chrissa Loukas-Karlsson said it was not an excuse for the offending, and urged the pair to do better to break out of the cycle of drug abuse and violence.
“You can do better than this, you have to do better than this,” the judge said.
“Drugs are not the answer, they’ve never been the answer.”
Justice Loukas-Karlsson sentenced Reid to five years and 11 months’ jail, backdated to take into account time spent in custody, with a non-parole period of three years and four months.
Evans was sentenced to four years and 11 months, with a non-parole period of two years and nine months.
Both men will be eligible for parole in May 2022. Justice Loukas-Karlsson urged the offenders to use their time in jail to better themselves.
“Your life is in your own hands,” she said.
The three other offenders were sentenced last year. Collier was sentenced to 18 months’ jail, with six months to serve, for aggravated burglary.
Stott served a year behind bars for aggravated robbery. Watson was sentenced to 18 months, suspended after eight months, for aggravated burglary.
Comments
Post a Comment