SA Judge Rauf Soulio sentences mail thief Brad Douglas Perry, says ‘culture of drug use’ sparked descent into crime
Workers on the Southern Expressway had a drug problem, a judge says – causing one of them to steal three suburbs’ worth of mail to fund his habit.
Police & Courts
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Overnight workers building the Southern Expressway had a “culture of drug use”, a judge says – which sparked one man’s theft of mail bound for 76 streets across three suburbs.
On Thursday, the District Court jailed Brad Douglas Perry for three years saying his crime, though rarely committed in Australia, was too serious for any penalty other than jail.
In sentencing, Judge Rauf Soulio said Perry had broken into three Australia Post depots in 2019 and stolen the mail with hopes of finding items to fund his drug habit.
He said Perry had returned to drug use after gaining employment as part of the Southern Expressway construction effort, delivering concrete.
He did not specify which part of the Southern Expressway Perry had worked on, but in 2019 significant works were conducted on the Darlington Interchange.
“In 2013, you took up work in the civil construction industry working, amongst other things, on the Southern Expressway,” Judge Soulio said.
“You worked for a concreting company between 2016 and 2017 and it was there, while you were working frequent night shifts and long hours in the context of a culture of drug use amongst your fellow employees, that you fell back into methylamphetamine use and addiction.
“Your drug use escalated … you had a pernicious addiction to methylamphetamine … your offending is so serious that no other penalty than immediate imprisonment should be imposed.”
Outside court, Opposition transport spokesman Tom Koutsantonis said the judge’s comments were “shocking”.
He called for the State Government to take a “comprehensive look” at drug use on infrastructure sites.
However, Transport Minister Corey Wingard said there was already a “zero tolerance policy” for expressway workers.
“The head contractor, a consortium of Laing O’Rourke and Fulton Hogan, had a strict policy in place regarding drug and alcohol use,” he said.
“If workers were found to be in breach of the policy they were removed from the project … the government will not tolerate this type of behaviour on any projects.”
In a statement, Laing O’Rourke and Fulton Hogan denied the site had a drug culture.
“We note the individual was a contractor delivery driver for a concrete supplier used by the project and not a full-time employee on the project,” he said.
“Gateway South had a zero tolerance approach to drugs and alcohol and there was no such culture on site.
“Throughout delivery of the project, the team conducted regular randomised drug and alcohol testing which was carried out by a third-party agency.”
Perry, 48, of Morphett Vale, pleaded guilty to three counts of dishonestly appropriating a mail receptacle, which carries a maximum 10-year prison term.
Between June 11 and 14, 2019, while affected by methylamphetamine, Perry took 14 mail bags bound for homes on 76 streets from three Australia Post depots.
He rifled through them for credit cards, cheques and items he could sell to buy drugs.
None of the stolen mail was recovered and Australia Post did not inform customers of the thefts – only 16 recipients knew of the crime because they had paid for tracking.
Perry apologised for his offending in court last month, saying he was “embarrassed and ashamed” that he “went absolutely off the rails”.
On Thursday, Judge Soulio said Perry’s crime was “relatively rare”, with a WA offender receiving a three-year term for stealing four mail bags containing 2000 items.
“The integrity of the postal service is an important part of the operation of society generally, and accords with community expectations,” he said.
“Theft of mail has the potential to cause disruption and, indeed, harm to the lives of the sender and intended recipient of that mail.
“Only a sentence of imprisonment is appropriate.”
Judge Soulio imposed a 20-month non-parole period, backdated to Perry’s arrest in August last year – making him eligible to seek release in April.
“I can only trust you will use the balance of the time you have in prison positively,” he told Perry.
Speaking after the hearing, Opposition transport spokesman Tom Koutsantonis said Perry’s case raised serious public safety concerns.
He said Judge Soulio's comments, coupled with 23 workers on the Gawler line electrification project failing drug tests, warranted greater scrutiny from the State Government.
“What Judge Soulio has said today is shocking for what it has revealed,” he said.
“This government needs to do more to make sure all its contractors are aware of their obligations to the safety of the public and the health of their workers.
“There needs to be a comprehensive look taken at the drug culture within our infrastructure projects … we need to ask what is going on.”
Mr Wingard said Laing O’Rourke and Fulton Hogan’s policies “ensure all workers on the project were fit for duty and that safety was not compromised”.
“Regular random drug and alcohol testing was undertaken throughout the project, which complied with the building code,” he said.
“As is required on all major projects, works were checked by an independent construction verifier to ensure compliance with the design.”
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