Knuckle dusters, shotgun shells and drugs uncovered in police search of Long Gully ‘man cave’

A Bendigo drug trafficker has been told to move back to the Sunshine state and give up his life of ‘drugs and weapons’.

At Bendigo Magistrates Court Christopher Martin Murphy plead guilty to charges in relation to handling a stolen motorbike, drug trafficking, drug possession and weapons offences.

A Bendigo-born drug trafficker has been warned to “get out of dodge” and move back to Queensland after being caught with drugs, weapons, stolen goods and thousands of dollars in drug money.

Bendigo Magistrates Court heard Christopher Martin Murphy’s recent troubles with the law started in April 2020 when he was caught with a stolen motorcycle.

Murphy’s lawyers said the Bendigo-born man had moved to Queensland, but returned to his home town to be reunited with someone he had known since he was 15.

An April search warrant of the address where Murphy was staying uncovered a blue 2009 Suzuki motorbike, which was stolen four months earlier.

Murphy admitted to attaching the false plates to the stolen bike “to get out of there”.

The raid also uncovered four vials of steroids in a locked cash tin, which Murphy claimed he had a prescription for, but did not produce.

A second search warrant of a Long Gully “man cave” in a shed uncovered shotgun shells, knuckle dusters, and a black bag with 108g of cannabis.

Murphy told police he did not know what the knuckle dusters were, but admitted the cannabis was for personal use.

Police said bank records connected to Murphy and his associates created a “drug money” digital paper trail recording more than $5000 in profits.

In November while on bail with a disqualified licence Murphy was again caught up in a police search.

Police said Murphy was at the wheel of a Holden ute in Long Gully when he began to act nervously and refused to make eye contact with officers.

A search of the vehicle found drugs, including 0.7g of methamphetamines.

Murphy’s lawyer said the Bendigo-born man developed a “strong problem with drugs in his early years”, which worsened when he moved to the Sunshine state.

But he said Murphy had tried to turn his life around, training as an apprentice chef and gaining work in a central western Queensland mine.

Magistrate Patrick Southey chastised the 45-year-old man for his long criminal history.

“You are approaching middle age,” Mr Southey told Murphy.

“Isn't it time to give up drugs and weapons?”

Mr Southey said the trafficking charges Murphy faced were serious, but said current Victorian sentencing guidelines meant “you get one chance for trafficking ice”.

“My personal view is that all ice traffickers should go to jail … I believe the community would agree,” Mr Southey said.

Mr Southey considered a community corrections order, but said since Murphy was leaving Victoria he would no longer pose a threat to the Bendigo community or a nuisance to local police.

“This is a warning to Mr Murphy that he should get out of Victoria if he knows what’s good for him,” Mr Southey said.

“You better get out of dodge.

“Good luck and don’t come back.”

Murphy plead guilty to handling stolen goods, disqualified driving and the drugs and weapons charges and was fined $3000.