Arthur Edwards, 35, pleaded guilty to offences including burglary, three counts of theft, negligently dealing with the proceeds of crime, three counts of driving an unregistered vehicle, failing an oral fluid test, driving an unroadworthy vehicle, dishonestly retaining stolen goods, contravening bail conditions, committing an indictable offence on bail, and two counts of breaching an intervention order and driving unlicensed.

The Bendigo Magistrates' Court heard Edwards was pulled over while driving last September and gave a saliva sample that was found to contain methamphetamine.

"I actually thought it would be out of my system," he told police.

The vehicle he was driving was also unregistered.

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Eleven days later he was intercepted on the same road in a vehicle bearing only one number plate, which was stolen, and with registration that had expired more than two years previously.

In October Edwards was again pulled over by police in an unregistered vehicle, and with an expired licence.

The following month police found him driving a ute with no number plates and no working rear lights.

Then on December 8, Edwards broke into a shed on a Bangerang Road property and stole a brand-new ski boat and trailer, a wakeboard, three motorcycles and motorcycle accessories and power tools, and ransacked a house, also stealing items.

Two witnesses later saw the boat and trailer being towed between Tatura and Murchison.

Later a vehicle towing the boat and trailer was captured on CCTV at a roadhouse at Wahring.

Edwards was also seen at the roadhouse, from where he stole indigestion tablets worth $12.

The stolen boat and trailer were later seen on the Goulburn Valley Freeway, on the Hume Highway at Wallan, and also at Craigieburn.

On December 20, police approached Edwards in his vehicle and noticed two bicycles known to be stolen inside the car.

He told police he had bought them from a friend and knew they were likely to have been stolen, but denied stealing the ski boat and being the driver of the vehicle later seen towing it.

Police searched Edwards' garage and found the wakeboard stolen in the Bangerang Road burglary. The boat remains missing.

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Defence lawyer Matthew Mahady asked magistrate Megan Aumair to consider a sentence of the 134 days Edwards had already spent in custody, combined with a lengthy community corrections order.

Mr Mahady said his client had completed a 16-week rehabilitation program, had been doing additional counselling and had not used drugs for several months.

"He's a changed man now," Mr Mahady said.

Edwards had secured work in Melbourne, he said, and was interested in obtaining drug counselling qualifications.

But prosecutor Phillip Raimondo submitted Edwards had a lengthy criminal history and had been given such opportunities in the past, but breached them.

Mr Raimondo said 134 days in custody was not long enough.

But Ms Aumair said that while this sentence was at the lower end, she recognised Edwards had completed intensive drug rehabilitation and appeared to be on the road to recovery.

She voiced concern further jail time would only undo the work he had done.

But Ms Aumair said Edwards had pleaded guilty to serious dishonesty offences.

She varied an existing community corrections order to begin again, with Edwards to complete 150 hours of unpaid community work within 12 months.

Ms Aumair also sentenced him to the 134 days of imprisonment already served, and another community corrections order of 18 months, with conditions he undertake treatment and rehabilitation for drug and alcohol abuse, and undertake offending behaviour programs.

Edwards will also be monitored over the course of the order.

His licence was also cancelled and he was disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Ms Aumair said that were it not for his guilty plea, Edwards would have spent a year in prison, followed by a 12-month community corrections order.

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