Keron Rook jailed for selling imitation pistol to clear a drug debt

A Central Coast man acted as an intermediary to supply an imitation pistol to clear a $3000 drug debt. His only problem was the police were watching the whole time, a court has heard.

When Keron Rook got out of prison in 2019 after serving six years for aggravated breaking and entering and kidnapping he vowed to stay off the drugs.

He was doing well for about a year until his relationship broke down, which roughly coincided with the global Covid pandemic last year, and the now 28-year-old fell in with an old “anti-social peer” who got him back on the drugs.

But when he accrued a $3000 drug debt he agreed to act as an intermediary in the sale of an imitation pistol to a woman in Sydney, a court has heard.

Rook, of Tacoma, faced Gosford District Court of Thursday after pleading guilty to possessing an unauthorised pistol and supplying a prohibited firearm, being an imitation self-loading pistol.

Keron Rook, of Tacoma, has been sentenced for supplying a prohibited weapon. Picture: Facebook

The court heard Rook came to the attention of police who were investigating the supply of firearms and lawfully intercepted his mobile phone and that of a number of others.

On October 27 last year Rook arranged to meet a woman at the Thornleigh Bunnings where she was captured on CCTV getting into his car.

About 20 minutes later she returned to her own vehicle.

The court heard the purpose of the meeting was to discuss the sale of a firearm, which the woman was to on-sell to another man.

Two days later, police intercepted more phone calls, in which Rook arranged to meet the woman again at McDonald’s at Arndell Park.

CCTV from the restaurant showed the woman get into Rook’s car about 8pm, which had a light on and “a silver object can be seen being placed into fluoro orange material and then into a green bag”.

Rook first agreed to meet the woman at Bunnings Thornleigh. Picture: Google

The woman then on-sold the weapon to another man, who Judge Tanya Bright said soon became aware of or “thought there was something missing from the firearm” and contacted the woman, who contacted Rook.

“It’s clear in my view he was not aware it was an imitation firearm,” Judge Bright said.

Intercepted messages revealed Rook received $5000 for the sale of the firearm.

On November 6, 2020, police got a warrant to search the other man’s Bossley Park address where he told them they would find a gun in a bucket in the garage.

They found the bucket which contained a green bag with a fluoro vest wrapped around the silver pistol.

Two weeks later police pulled Rook over at Toukley and a search of his car uncovered an extendible metal baton hidden between the passenger seat and the parking brake.

Rook was sentenced at Gosford District Court on Thursday. (AAP Image/Sue Graham)

The court heard Rook later pleaded guilty in Wyong Local Court to possessing a prohibited weapon and received a three-month sentence, which he has already served.

“Those facts clearly disclose a very serious objective criminality,” Judge Bright said.

“In sentencing for firearm offences general deterrence has an important role to play. Members of the community must well understand that the courts will impose very significant punishment upon individuals who illegally possess and sell firearms.

“Clearly unregistered firearms in the community create a very significant risk, particularly in relation to potential use for further criminal offending. This is so even if the firearm is an imitation firearm, which are regularly used in the commission of criminal offences.”

The court heard Rook was using 2g of methylamphetamine and heroin daily at the time.

“He said he owed his friend a sum of $3000 for methylamphetamine and agreed to participate in the offences to clear his debt,” Judge Bright said.

She sentenced him to two years and eight months jail with a non-parole period of one year and eight months.

With time served he will be eligible for release on July 20, 2022.