Berkeley Vale: Former bikie turned ‘house husband’ Matthew Molloy sentenced for commercial drug supply
A former bikie, who lied to his wife about losing his job and being back on drugs, has been jailed after stashing illicit substances in a barbecue gas bottle with a false bottom.
Central Coast
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Matthew Molloy became a “house husband” when he lost his job driving trucks in the mines because of a failed drug test.
But a court has heard the now 38-year-old former outlaw motorcycle gang member lied to his wife about why he was fired, and the fact he was back on the drugs, when he was pulled over driving her unregistered white LDV ute at Berkeley Vale.
Molloy, of Wyee, failed a roadside drug test, which prompted the police to search the ute.
Officers found 3.49g of meth, 2.12g of cocaine and $10,835 in cash, which was the proceeds of crime.
Molloy’s problems became a lot worse when officers from Strike Force Wandarri then searched the ute more closely and found a further 433.67g of meth in a Sun Rice wholegrain chip packet in the footwell behind the driver’s seat.
Police also searched a Storage King shed at Morisset, leased under his business name of “Certified Pumps”, where they found an 8.5kg “Swap n Go” gas bottle with a false bottom.
Inside the gas bottle, officers found 1.415kg of pseudoephedrine and a small amount of cannabis.
They also found more bundles of cash totalling $74,035, which was also deemed to be the proceeds of crime.
Molloy faced Newcastle District Court on Friday after pleading guilty to two counts of supplying commercial quantities of meth and speed, and dealing with the proceeds of crime.
He also pleaded guilty to possessing small amounts of meth, cocaine and cannabis for personal use, possessing a taser and driving with an illicit drug in his system.
An agreed set of facts states Molloy was pulled over on Wyong Rd on October 25, 2020, when his wife’s unregistered ute flagged an alert with a Traffic & Highway Patrol car.
He gave police a Queensland address and told them he was down visiting his wife and had nearly $25,000 in cash on him to buy a new concrete pump.
But checks revealed he had never lived at the Queensland address, and he had been seen earlier that day by officers from Strike Force Wandarri picking up drugs from a man they had under surveillance at North Avoca.
Molloy’s wife, Stephanie Molloy, gave evidence at his sentence hearing.
She said while she had known about his outlaw motorcycle gang involvement in the past, he lied about how he lost his job and the fact he was back on drugs for about a year before his arrest.
“I did have my suspicions, but I didn’t have any evidence,” Mrs Molloy told the court.
“He lied to me and said he wasn’t using drugs.”
She said after he lost his job, he had been helping their family side business breeding French and British bulldogs.
However, since his incarceration, Mrs Molloy said it had been hard financially managing private school fees, dancing and boxing lessons, and maintaining their family’s comfortable lifestyle.
Judge Troy Anderson said Molloy “effectively became a house husband” after losing his job and it was hard to comprehend how the couple’s financial situation could be any worse while he was in jail, despite their modest side hustle of “selling pedigree puppies”.
“It is clear he hasn’t been entirely honest with her,” Judge Anderson said.
Judge Anderson sentenced Molloy to five years in jail, with a non-parole period of three years and three months.
He also fined him $450 and disqualified Molloy from driving for six months.
With time already served, Molloy will be eligible for release on January 24, 2026.
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