Justin Sultana: Repeated drink driver busted with guns and swords

A Yarragon father has been slammed by a Magistrate for keeping unsecured firearms and weapons, calling it “unsafe” behaviour.

A Yarragon father of two who owns a scaffolding business was busted driving with alcohol and drugs in his system repeatedly before police found swords and firearms at his address.

Magistrate Belinda Wallington told Justin Sultana he needed to “have his wits about him caring for two young children”, when he faced the Latrobe Valley Magistrates Court on Monday pleading guilty to driving and weapons charges.

The court heard Sultana was busted for drink driving in March of 2020, where he was found to have an alcohol reading of 0.157.

He was also unlicensed at the time.

He told police he hadn’t “considered the possibility he could be over” despite drinking four stubbies of full strength beer earlier.

“If I had gotten to my girlfriend’s house I would have been safe,” he told police in interview.

In June last year Sultana was again intercepted by police after he was clocked doing 120km/h in a 100km/h zone.

A drug test revealed he had meth in his system which he told police he had done “over the weekend”.

“Everyone says after eight hours you’re fine to drive,” he said.

A few days later Sultana was driving on Scorpio Drive in Moe when he veered onto the wrong side of the road and collided with an oncoming car.

When police escorted Sultana to the police station he blew 0.081 on a breath test.

Under his licence conditions he was required to blow zero and his vehicle needed to have an interlock system, which it did not.

The other driver suffered a severely strained wrist as a result of the collision.

A police prosecutor told the court Sultana showed “no remorse”.

In September last year Sultana’s offending changed pace and he was found to have sold a firearm to a friend who later went on to sell it to a covert police officer.

The shotgun was not operational however texts were uncovered by police revealed Sultana had plans to make the firearm operational by installing a firing pin.

After this, police conducted search warrants at Sultana’s address where they uncovered firearms which, despite Sultana having a firearms licence, were incorrectly stored.

Police also found a silencer, vials of testosterone, boxes of ammunition, two double edged swords and a laser pointer.

The court heard Sultana had two young children who he shared custody with their mother. Magistrate Wallington said he “needed to have his wits about him” if he was to care for young children.

She said having weapons and unsecured firearms were not safe for kids to be around.

Magistrate Wallington had Sultana assessed for a community corrections order.

He will return to court later this week.