Malcolm Berkeley: Man tasered by cops pleads guilty in Manly Court to punching police
A man tasered during a scuffle with cops after they found guns during a shed fire on a rural property on Sydney’s northern beaches has pleaded guilty to belting police.
Manly
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A man who pleaded guilty to belting two police officers after they discovered two rifles on his property described the attack as an “impulsive assault”, a court heard today.
Malcolm Berkeley, 54, lashed out at police trying to stop him running away after they found the guns and more than 600 rounds of ammunition at his Belrose property.
Officers were forced to use a taser to subdue Berkeley after had become upset with firefighters who had turned up to put out a blaze in his shed on Monday morning.
Berkeley, who lives alone in a cottage on the property owned by his elderly mother in Hilversum Cres, pleaded guilty in Manly Local Court to two counts of assaulting police, one count of resisting arrest, two counts of not keep firearm safely and one count of not having approved firearm storage.
In a facts sheet tendered to court police said NSW Fire and Rescue were called to the 2.3ha property after Berkeley’s mother saw the shed on fire at about 10.30am.
The fire was quickly extinguished. Berkeley, who had been to the city to buy silver, arrived home shortly after.
He was uncooperative with the firefighters and was seen carrying what looked like a long bag containing a rifle. After firefighters were told there was a .22 calibre rifle and ammunition on the property, they called Northern Beaches Police.
When police arrived they were met by Berkeley, who had a gun licence, carrying a rifle in a bag along with a full clip containing bullets and a separate pouch containing ammunition.
He was asked to put the Savage rifle on the ground, which he did. Berkeley then told police he had a Remington .243 rifle in his car.
His mother then told police she believed he had the rifle in the car to protect himself in case someone tried to steal the silver from him.
Berkeley then put his hands into his pockets to retrieve more bullets, but police told him to remove his hands and moved towards him.
But Berkeley ran from police. As they caught up top him, he swung his hand and struck a probationary constable in the nose, causing it to bleed.
As five officers tried to put him in handcuffs. he lashed out and hit a female senior constable to the left jaw.
He yelled as police tackled him to the ground: “You guys are f … ing Nazis.”
An officer then used a taser, which struck him on the buttocks.
“You got me,” Berkeley said.
“That was fun. I enjoyed that thoroughly guys. We should do that more often.”
As well as the two rifles, police seized 533 rounds of .22 ammunition and 87 of .243 bullets. Some of the bullets were found under his bed.
During an application to have Berkeley released on bail, his solicitor Philippa Grant said his brother described him as a “very vulnerable person” who does not work and had lived in the cottage for 20 years.
Ms Grant said she was told the attack on police was an “impulsive assault” by her client who had no previous history of violence.
Magistrate Scott Nash granted Berkeley strict conditional bail.
He will be sentenced in Manly Local Court on September 30.