Geoff Wetzel faces court over Ikonic Hair Studio robbery
A hairdresser threatened by a knife-wielding man in a Ballarat salon says she suffers from regular nightmares after the terrifying incident, which was captured on video.
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An armed robber brandishing a knife has terrorised staff and clients in a popular Ballarat East hair salon.
CCTV footage captured the moment Geoff Wetzel, 29, walked into Ikonic Hair Studio at Kline St on January 21 after 7pm.
The desperate thug, disguised in a hoodie and glasses, walked up to a worker counting money at the front of the store and waved a knife at her, demanding cash.
The terrified woman handed over a container with coins, but he snatched notes sitting on the bench and keys before running out the front door with $200.
In a victim impact statement read to the County Court, the woman Wetzel demanded money from said she saw a psychologist for the emotional trauma and still had regular nightmares.
“Whenever I am at work, particularly in the evening, I am always checking out the window,” the court heard.
“I need to remind myself to keep working and that I do not need to panic and I’m not in danger.”
She wrote that she was thankful her young children had left the salon two hours before the armed robbery took place.
The court heard on February 6, while in the cells at Ballarat Police Station, Wetzel denied having committed the armed robbery to undercover police.
But when asked by them if he needed anything to be hidden, he told them the knife had been disposed of.
Defence barrister Peta Smith told the court Wetzel had been using up to one gram of ice a day and had not slept for nearly one week before his offending.
Ms Smith described the crime as unsophisticated and spontaneous, telling the court there hadn’t been a serious level of planning as Wetzel walked past the salon on most days.
Judge Rosemary Carlin said Wetzel having disguised and armed himself indicated a degree of premeditation.
In January before committing the armed robbery, Wetzel also used a stolen bank card to buy phone credit worth $30 and more than $90 worth of fuel and cigarettes.
Wetzel has pleaded guilty to one count of armed robbery and four counts of obtaining property by deception.
He will return to court on December 3, to be sentenced.
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