Desmond Robinson: Kerang dad steals guns from dead man

A Kerang father of 11 whose pregnant partner was killed in a car crash stole from a dead man then pawned off what he took.

A Kerang father of 11 whose pregnant partner was killed in a car crash stole the last remaining possessions from a dead man then pawned off what he took.

Desmond Robinson, 39, appeared in Melbourne County Court to plead guilty to stealing two firearms, a ride-on mower and a bench saw from a Koroop home in 2019.

The court heard the former labourer and self-taught mechanic broke into the Smith Rd rural property, 136km north of Bendigo, on October 29.

The rural property was previously owned by Alexander Lindsay, who had died a year earlier.

Robinson broke into the dead man’s home through an unlocked back door.

He removed the padlocks from a homemade gun case and stole a .22 Rimfire Bolt Action Rifle and a London Small 12 Gauge double barrelled shotgun.

Robinson then went into the farm shed and loaded a Red Cox ride-on lawnmower and a bench saw onto his trailer and drove home.

The Kerang man then turned to Facebook to pawn off the stolen ride-on mower which he “needed gone asap” for $350.

Five days later he also sold the bench saw for $350.

Eventually police raided his home under a firearms act search warrant, and he was taken to Kerang Police station for questioning.

Police found his fingerprints throughout the dead man’s property.

The ride-on mower and the bench saw were recovered, but the stolen firearms remain missing.

Judge Justin Hannebery said Robinson’s theft had released two previously-monitored firearms into the community, potentially putting everyone at risk.

On Tuesday August 10, Robinson pleaded guilty to burglary, theft, theft of a firearm and recklessly causing injury.

His lawyer Rebecca Heley said Robinson had grown up with violence and drug use.

Ms Heley said his addiction began after his cousin injected him with an amphetamine when he was just nine years old.

She said he left school at 14, and had managed to maintain a long-term career as a labourer and “bush mechanic”.

Robinson began to weep as Ms Heley told the court about his late-partner, who died while pregnant with their child in a serious car accident in 2001.

Ms Heley said he held her in his arms as she died, despite being so injured his mother could not recognise him after the crash.

She said the father of 11 had struggled being apart from his family, particularly as his six-month-old was born with a hole in her heart and he feared she would die while he was in prison.

Despite the hardship, Ms Heley said Robinson was trying to turn his life around and was now drug free for 15-months.

Ms Heley said Robinson had offers of employment as a rubbish removal company, and his friends had offered him a place to live on his release.

Ms Heley acknowledged that Robinson had “breached a hell of a lot of orders”, but said he wanted to stay on the right path.

After missing a County Court hearing in December, Robinson was arrested on March 12 and had spent 151 days in pre-sentence detention.

Judge Justin Hannebery said may have “sabotaged” his chances of a community corrections order, but said he should still be assessed.

Robinson will be sentenced in October.