Mildura Magistrates’ Court: Jason Richards pleads guilty to trafficking meth

A Mildura truckie and father of two was busted with a stash of meth after hitting the gear in the wake of his girlfriend dumping him.

A truckie and father of two has been put on a two-year good behaviour bond after bags of meth were found at his home in Mildura after it was raided by police.

Jason Richards, 41 was arrested earlier in July this year after Mildura police searched his home and found six zip lock bags full of a white and brown crystal substance, which testing revealed to be methamphetamine.

Jason Richards plead guilty to trafficking methamphetamine

When Richards was taken to Mildura police station he made full admissions to attempting to traffic the drug which police confirmed through analysis of his phone.

Richard’s defence Lawyer Hugh Middleton made submissions to the court that his client had only fallen off the wagon because his long-time girlfriend had broken up with him.

“He relapsed into drugs as a consequence of the end of a relationship and stated to me that he started hanging around with the wrong people again,” Mr Middleton said.

“You’d have to look back many years to find drug offences in his priors.”

Mr Middleton went on to say that while he would typically ask for a community corrections order Richard‘s work as an interstate truck driver simply wouldn’t allow him to keep on top of his obligation to the order.

He often has to go to Melbourne, Adelaide, or Sydney with only a couple of hours notice, she said.

“This would make it hard for him to complete a CCO,”

Magistrate Megan Aumair took this into account in her sentencing but assured Richards that if he breached the bond he would be jailed.

“This hangs over your head for two years, you steal a chocolate bar from a service station on one of your interstate trips, you will breach this undertaking,” she said.

“If you beach it I will send you to jail.”

Richards was sentenced to a two-year good behaviour bond fined $2000 for his offending.