Les Tripp: Paternity fraud led Ipswich dad down drug path

An Ipswich man’s drug abuse began when he discovered he had been wrongly identified as the biological father of a child. Years later, his addiction has landed him in court.

The downward spiral of substance abuse which landed an Ipswich dad in court began when his ex-partner lied and told him her child was biologically his, a court has heard.

Les Tripp, 36, from Riverview appeared in Ipswich Magistrates Court on Friday March 4, where he pleaded guilty to 21 charges including possessing dangerous drugs, driving under the influence of intoxicants, and unlawful possession of weapons.

The court heard Tripp offended over a period of about two years, with police discovering 3.3g of methamphetamine and a further 0.823g of pure methamphetamine on his person.

His first offence before the court involved him driving with methamphetamine in his system on November 8, 2019, when he was on a suspended sentence for two other like offences.

Weeks later, on December 1, 2019, five clip-seal bags containing 3.3g of methamphetamine, an uncapped syringe, a foldable pocket knife, a set of knuckle dusters, clip-seal bags, and 22 tablets of diazepam were found on him while he was driving under the influence of methamphetamine and amphetamine.

On July 16, 2020, Tripp was again found to be in possession of a “significant” amount of methamphetamine.

A search warrant uncovered a total of 10 bags containing 0.823g of pure methamphetamine, cocaine, cannabis, 17 tablets of diazepam, two glass pipes, an electric grinder, clip-seal bags, and electronic scales.

He was later found to be in possession, yet again, of methamphetamine.

The prosecution said he failed to appear in court for a period of 11 months throughout the two-year period of offending.

The court heard Tripp suffered from depression and anxiety and had been using drugs for about seven or eight years; ever since his ex-partner told him her child was biologically his when in fact it was not.

Tripp’s lawyer James Wallace said his client had a one-year-old child with his partner of two years, who was now pregnant with their second.

Mr Wallace said the three months Tripp had served in presentence custody for the offences before the court had acted as a “circuit breaker” and he was eager to change his ways.

Magistrate Virginia Sturgess acknowledged drugs had been an ongoing issue for him, but said she was “dubious” about his commitment to reform.

Tripp was sentenced to a total of 18 months’ imprisonment with immediate parole – with three months declared as time served – and was disqualified from driving for 21 months.