Makala Mifka: Shepparton drug dealing hoon’s wild police chase
A Shepparton drug dealer has led cops on a high-speed pursuit through quiet suburban streets before crashing into a road sign while trying to dodge a police roadblock.
Goulburn Valley
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A Shepparton drug dealer who sped through residential streets at 150km/h with drugs pulsing through her veins turned to illegal substances to deal with years of trauma, a court heard.
Magistrate Lance Martin said he was not sure whether he would or would not give Makala Mifka more jail time after she pleaded guilty to charges of trafficking and dangerous driving before the Shepparton Magistrates’ Court.
The 27-year-old has already spent 81 days in custody for the offending which started on July 27 9pm.
Police spotted her driving a car with different front and rear number plates down Orrvale Rd, Shepparton, driving faster than 150km/h in a 60km/h area.
Police set up stop sticks at the Doyles Rd and Poplar Ave intersection, but Mifka attempted to swerve around officers, causing her car to hit a road sign and spin 180 degrees.
A witness in the back seat of the car was found in a distressed state while Mifka was handcuffed and arrested.
When searched, she had a small clear bottle of GHB in her possession as well as a small ziplock bag of meth hidden in her bra.
She later underwent an oral fluid test, which detected meth in her system.
She was bailed – but it did not stop her getting behind the wheel and driving dangerously again.
On August 14, she rented a Triton Ute from Budget Car Rentals.
In the early hours of August 16, police saw the car weave onto the wrong side of the road, driving 100km/h in a 60 zone.
It then pummelled through a red light at the Wyndham St and Wilmot Rd intersection.
Police tried to drive behind the car, but it was not possible due to how fast it was going.
The car continued at a fast speed through residential South Shepparton with headlights off, and despite police losing sight of the vehicle, they later spotted it parked at a house, with the accused and passenger running away.
Police searched Mifka’s black handbag and found brown powder thought to be MDMA, a white tablet, number of empty ziplock bags, a large amount of “drug paraphernalia” and a “large amount” of liquid GHB.
They also found a bank card in someone else’s name, which was linked to a car theft in Bentleigh East about July 18 to 19.
Police also seized her phone, and analysis showed she had sent and received a number of messages discussing the purchase and selling of MDMA, GHB, and meth.
Police also discovered a folder on her phone called “scam”, with pictures of a large number of IDs and credit cards in various names.
Mifka’s lawyer said her client’s time in custody had gone “the majority of the way” in punishing her, and suggested rehab while living in the community would be suitable.
The court heard Mifka pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity, and client had been in custody for 81 days – the longest time she has spent behind bars.
Mifka’s lawyer said her client had a difficult childhood growing up in Shepparton, and was later in a long-term relationship with an abusive partner.
Her lawyer said her drug use escalated when this relationship ended, which put her behind bars for 60 days.
She was temporarily clean from drugs, but the court heard Mifka spiralled again in mid-2020. While she was technically meant to be living with her mum, she lived a drug-fuelled lifestyle, sleeping at the homes of different associates and friends.
The court heard a doctor’s report showed Mifka had not received support for her PTSD, and used drugs as a coping mechanism.
Yet there was not much defence for Mifka’s dangerous driving, which her lawyer said was “clearly outrageous”, and reflective of a “chaotic lifestyle” which her client now understood posed a “significant risk” to the community.
Since being in prison, the court heard Mifka has done as many courses as possible, had worked in the laundry and in horticulture, and spoke to her family twice a week, who remained supportive of her.
But Magistrate Lance Martin said a prison sentence as well as a community corrections order was “within range”, and ordered a report be written to see if she was suitable for this type of sentence.
“At this stage, I would indicate I’m not persuaded one way or another whether 81 days is adequate or not,” he said.
Mifka will front court again on November 24.
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