Matthew Bruce sentenced: Rebels bikie working toward early release date
A dangerous, heavily tattooed bikie has had a change of heart in prison, but a magistrate, while sentencing him for further serious crimes, said it was inevitable the thug would wind up in deep trouble.
West
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A feared Rebels bikie got a tongue lashing from a magistrate who said he’d always known the tattooed thug would find himself in “trouble”.
Magistrate Richard Pithouse didn’t mince his words when he handed down a 12-month jail term to Rebels sergeant-at-arms Matthew Bruce for charges including drug trafficking, weapons possession, dealing with the proceeds of crime and failing to surrender firearm ammunition at Sunshine Magistrates’ Court on Monday, October 19.
Bruce was sentenced by the County Court to 21 years and six months prison in August for charges including trafficking a commercial quantity of methamphetamine, possessing a trafficable quantity of firearms, arson, discharging a firearm at premises, committing an indictable offence on bail and making false reports to police.
Court documents revealed the crimes dealt with by the court on Monday immediately predated his County Court offences.
Bruce’s lawyer David McKenna told the court his client’s earliest parole date was in October 2033 for his County Court sentence.
He urged Mr Pithouse not to impose a “crushing” sentence on his 37-year-old client who he said had thrown himself into prison courses in a bid to win an early release.
“Clearly the term he faces now is the most significant (jail time he’s ever served) … when he’s ultimately released he’ll be a much older man,” Mr McKenna said.
Mr Pithouse said Bruce had come before him on a number of occasions and it was inevitable the brute found himself in trouble.
“I’ve seen the development of Mr Bruce as a person but also as a criminal,” Mr Pithouse said.
“It was inevitable that he was going to run into trouble … to use a colloquialism, Mr Bruce has turned into a train wreck and he’s now crawled out from under it.”
He said he hoped Mr Bruce would use his jail time to encourage other young prisoners not to make the same mistakes as he did.
“It is very rare in my experience to have someone come before me who has had such a significant sentence imposed,” Mr Pithouse said.
“I think his attitude has changed into resignation and I actually accept what has been said in psychological reports that he intends to be rehabilitated.”
Mr Pithouse ordered his 12-month term be served concurrently with Bruce’s County Court sentence.
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