Simon Tehira: Father of three busted with drugs, knife in Epping

A father of three caught hiding in a Greenvale couple’s home was caught in the midst of a drug fuelled psychosis, a court has heard. This is what he told police he saw.

Simon Tehira, 37, won’t be winning any Father of the Year awards after he was thrown in jail again for drug and weapon offences. Picture: supplied

Bad habits can be difficult to break, particularly when they’ve been ingrained during a long hard stint behind bars, a court has heard.

Father of three Simon Tehira, 37, was not long out of prison when he was busted with a knife and GHB while driving in Epping on February 19 last year, Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court heard on Thursday.

When asked for an explanation by police, Senior Constable Moana Kidd told the court Tehira was upfront and didn’t try to sugar coat anything.

“To tell you the truth, old habits die hard,” Tehira told the cops.

“I used to walk around with a knife in jail.”

But it was a second incident weeks later that had Magistrate Abigail Burchill seeing red.

On February 28 Tehira broke into a 66-year-old man’s Greenvale home while the man and his wife were asleep, Sen-Constable Kidd told the court.

The man woke up to find Tehira trembling and hiding inside the house while caught in the grip of a drug-induced psychosis.

He blabbered that he was being chased and had been shot at by a man wearing black clothing.

Terrified, he’d broken into their home in an effort to escape.

But when he repeated the story to sceptical police, who showed up following a 000 call by the frightened homeowner, they quickly determined the real demons were inside Tehira’s head.

Tehira’s lawyer Alexia Frossynos told the court her client had struggled with addiction for years and did not mean to lie to police.

But she back peddled when Ms Burchill slammed her submission that his drug offending was “low level”.

“I don’t accept what you’re saying that it is just a low level of possession of GHB … he shouldn’t even have it,” Ms Burchill said.

“This is a person who’s off his face, in someone’s house.”

Tehira pleaded guilty to charges including drug and weapon possession and burglary.

Ms Burchill sentenced him to four months’ jail.

“You are 37 or 38 years old and you are old enough to know better,” Ms Burchill said.

“That you continue to put GHB and whatever you can down your throat is just breathtaking.”

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