A DRUG trafficker who went on a "one-man crime spree" around Bendigo has been jailed for 18 months.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Glen Wallis, 43, appeared in the Bendigo Magistrates' Court this week where he pleaded guilty to 25 charges including burglary and trafficking a drug of dependence.
The court heard on the evening of March 29 last year, police saw Wallis speeding through an Eaglehawk intersection on a stolen dirt bike.
Officers followed Wallis along McCormack's Road but did not try to intercept him until he overshot the intersection with Midson Street.
Wallis ran off the road at a slow speed and the officers pulled up alongside him.
Before the two police members were able to approach Wallis, he restarted the bike and deliberately drove at police in an attempt to avoid arrest.
The officer grabbed Wallis' backpack and the 43-year-old came off the bike. He was eventually subdued and arrested.
Police searched his backpack and found small ziplock bags, electronic scales, 4.32 grams of methamphetamine, three ecstasy tablets, and an ice pipe.
Wallis was disqualified from driving and on bail at the time of the offending.
He was taken to hospital after complaining about chest pains, but he checked himself out before he was admitted. Wallis was not interviewed in relation to the offending.
Police began investigating Wallis and found that between May 1 and August 7, he trafficked more than 40 grams of methamphetamine and 50ml GHB to a regular client base in excess of 30 people.
Wallis' phone records showed hundreds of text messages and Facebook conversations about buying and selling drugs.
Police were also able to access Wallis' bank records, which showed he received 162 payments between May 1 and July 24.
He received $36,482.64 in that timeframe. Wallis was on Centrelink Jobseeker payments during that period.
Read more court: Bendigo police car rammer given lengthy prison term
Wallis was arrested on August 7 but was not interviewed. He was granted bail at the Bendigo Magistrates' Court seven days later.
The court heard on February 21 this year, Wallis went to the St Vincent De Paul charity store in Kangaroo Flat.
He used a counterfeit $100 note to purchase items valued at $12. The staff member did not realise the note was counterfeit and gave Wallis $88 in change before he left the store.
Wallis was arrested at the Bendigo Train Station on March 10. He was not interviewed because he was showing flu-like symptoms.
The 43-year-old also pleaded guilty to stealing a rental car from a Bendigo business in 2019 and breaking into a Long Gully home in February last year.
Defence lawyer Georgia Kaye-Helmot told the court Wallis had already been in custody for 169 days.
Ms Kaye-Helmot said Wallis was "remorseful and regretful" for the offending, and that his crimes started when he was in a bad relationship with a former partner.
Magistrate Angela Bolger said she found it hard to believe that Wallis' "one-man crime wave" was the result of a bad relationship.
Ms Kaye-Helmot said Wallis conceded the serious offending was linked to his drug addiction.
The defence counsel said her client had also been diagnosed with anxiety and depression.
Ms Kaye-Helmot said while Wallis had previously not complied with community corrections orders, he should be granted another chance at an order.
But Ms Bolger said she would not consider that submission given the seriousness of the charges.
The magistrate said the offending was "nothing short of appalling" and Wallis needed to be deterred from committing more offences in the future.
Wallis was convicted and jailed for 18 months, with a non-parole period of 12 months. His 169 days of pre-sentence detention were reckoned as already served.
His licence was also cancelled and he was disqualified from driving for four years.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:
- Bookmark bendigoadvertiser.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter @BgoAddy
- Follow us on Instagram @bendigoadvertiser
- Join us on Facebook
- Follow us on Google News