Jacob Dunn fronts County Court over robbery of servo

A drugged-up maniac robbed a South Melbourne servo, before he tried the same stunt on two other businesses before punching an arresting police officer.

CCTV footage shows Jacob Dunn threatening Local Express store attendant Umesh Thapa with a black box knife.

A drugged-up thug robbed a service station and attempted to rob two other businesses within 15 minutes of each other before punching a police officer during arrest, a court has heard.

Jacob Dunn was sentenced in the County Court at Melbourne on Tuesday to five years and six months with a minimum non parole of three years and six months.

The 26-year-old pleaded guilty to charges of attempted armed robbery, armed robbery, assault with intend to prevent arrest, assault with a weapon, and intentionally damaging property.

Court documents showed Dunn walked up to an unknown female sitting outside the Local Express store in South Melbourne on May 1, 2023, gave her a soft red drink in a plastic

bottle and asked her to hold it.

He told her he was going to do an armed robbery and would be back in a minute. Dunn then entered the store on Kings Way, produced a black box knife and flicked the blade out.

When the store attendant refused, Dunn lunged at him with the knife, kicked a door and damaged the computer register screens.

CCTV footage shows Ampol service station attendants giving cash from the till to Jacob Dunn.

Dunn then entered the Ampol service station on the same street and threatened staff with the knife and made off with $675 cash. After receiving the money, he said to the staff, “its not much, have a good day, we all got to eat”.

He then went to the United service station nearby but the shop attendant had pressed the emergency button before Dunn could jump behind the counter.

Sergeant Adam Sharp and Constable Luke Kealy drew their guns and ordered Dunn to get on the floor but he challenged them to shoot him.

When Sgt Sharp deployed the OC spray and approached him, Dunn punched him in the face before more officers arrived and arrested him.

Judge Liz Gaynor said when Dunn wasn’t using drugs, he was a man of promise and engaged well as vouched by his support workers.

“When you use drugs, you become a different person and you behave in a way that is violent, dangerous and threatening.

“I am hoping that you can use this time in jail to really settle yourself, really fix in your head the notion that you have certain things within yourself that you must look after, and that drugs are extremely dangerous for you,” she said.