Ricky Meyer: Career crook ‘carnie’ used drugs at eight years old
“Blood everywhere”: He was given dope by a brother as a young boy and grew up in a horror home full of “hectic” family violence.
South East
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A frequent-flyer felon with a shocking rap sheet is behind bars after driving dangerously while high and embarking on a strange shoplifting spree.
Ricky Meyer – who has never held a full licence – smashed into a car at traffic lights and then fled the scene, later refusing to be tested for drugs.
The 39-year-old Capel Sound carnival worker also stole a selection of meats and some macaroni cheese from a supermarket.
Meyer is currently serving a four-year nine-month prison sentence after he bashed a bloke in the head with a baseball bat.
He pleaded guilty to a series of driving and theft charges at the Frankston Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday.
The court heard in February last year Meyer was seen driving a Ford Territory in Rosebud in a “fast and erratic” manner.
Moments later he piled into the back of a car that was waiting at red lights, before driving off and coming to a stop around 500m away.
Police were called and Meyer denied he was the driver, although he had been seen behind the wheel by multiple witnesses.
He tested positive for drugs in a preliminary oral fluid test, but refused to accompany officers to provide a full sample.
In August last year he walked into the IGA supermarket in Sorrento and stole meatballs, fillet steak and macaroni cheese products.
He left the store and got on a bus, but was picked up by police in Rye and arrested.
He was also caught driving while disqualified in Capel Sound in January this year.
Defence lawyer Hannah Fiddelaers said her client had a horrific upbringing in a dysfunctional home surrounded by violence and anger.
The court heard his childhood consisted of “hectic domestics, with blood everywhere” which led him to normalise criminality.
He has 14 siblings, and was introduced to cannabis at the age of eight, which then progressed to amphetamine and heroin use by the time he was 13.
Ms Fiddelaers said he was remorseful for his latest offending and was hopeful of a brighter future when released.
Magistrate Dr Michael King said his driving was extremely dangerous and he had put himself and others at serious risk of harm.
Dr King said he had a very poor criminal and traffic record and a term of imprisonment was warranted.
Meyer was jailed for five months and disqualified from driving for four years.
He was also ordered to pay $50 restitution for the food he stole.
