Matthew James: Jailed Hastings thug gets mum to threaten ex
A Hastings dope dealer asked his mum to threaten his girlfriend, saying he will “cut the c***’s throat” and “f*** her up”.
South East
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A self-confessed “I love mull” drug-dealing addict who threatened to kill his ex-partner – from inside jail — is now back behind bars.
Matthew John James rang his mother while in custody demanding she pass vile messages to his former girlfriend, who is also the mother of his two children.
Some of the hideous comments included that he was going to “f*** her up”, “cut the c***’s throat”, “punch the f*** out of her” and that he was “sick of that little c***”.
The Hastings 33-year-old scaffolder was also nabbed with a backpack full of cannabis, which he reckons was for sharing with his marijuana-loving mates.
He also fell off his pushbike in a police ‘chase’, and was again found with drugs and weapons.
James pleaded guilty to threats to kill, using a carriage service to menace, drug trafficking, weapons and bail breach charges at the Frankston Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.
The court heard in September 2019 while in prison he made several calls to his mum and dad, asking them in disgusting language to “pass on” messages to his ex-girlfriend.
Despite previously spending time in custody he obviously didn’t realise every word spoken on prison phones was recorded and passed on to authorities.
In August last year police received reports of a suspicious male loitering around houses in Hastings.
When they arrived they saw James walking into a driveway and picking up a backpack that had been hidden behind a tree.
Inside were bags of cannabis weighing 137g in total, a knife and $710 in cash as well as empty deal bags.
When they arrested him they also found another $390 in his wallet and some keys, with a small ice-smoking pipe attached.
He told officers he had hidden the backpack because “people were chasing him”, admitted possessing cannabis as “I loves my mull” and was dealing drugs to “divvy up with my friends”.
He was bailed, but in the early hours of February 12 this year police came across him riding a pushbike in Hastings.
He tried to wheel away but crashed and fell, hobbling off and throwing a backpack over a fence.
Inside the backpack was an ice pipe, three bags of cannabis, prescription medication, a small quantity of ice and a pocket knife.
He gave police a “no comment” interview, except to say “I’m a drug addict”.
His defence lawyer said his client had been smoking cannabis since the age of 15, and the breakdown of his relationship exasperated his drug abuse.
He said James was “venting” when he made the threats to the woman, and was embarrassed, remorseful and regretful about the “using of vulgar language at a low point in his life”.
He said he didn’t want to do a corrections order and would rather a straight jail term be imposed.
Magistrate Dr Michael King said if James didn’t attend to his drug and attitude issues he would end up spending an awful lot of his life in jail.
“He has served periods of imprisonment before for threats to kill, assault and other offences,” Dr King said.
“My concern is he doesn’t want to engage in any treatment.
“It is disturbing that he is not prepared to engage in an order.”
James was jailed for nine months, minus 76 days classed as time served, and fined $1000.
