Tigers premiership hero’s stolen medals returned 20 months later

Richmond superstar Shai Bolton has been reunited with his premiership medals 20 months after they were taken and the 36-year-old man who allegedly stole them has told a court of his “bad drug habit”.

Shai Bolton’s medals were stolen from a Malvern home 20 months ago. Picture: Getty Images

Stolen premiership medals won by Richmond star Shai Bolton have been recovered by police.

Investigators seized the medals – 20 months after they were stolen – when they raided a Seaford property as part of a burglary investigation.

They had been investigating 104 offences before the raid at Austin Rd.

They involved burglaries and thefts from businesses in Brighton, Chelsea Heights, Sandringham, Hampton and Dingley Village since July.

Seaford man Brodie Knott, 36, is facing a total of 104 charges including 29 counts of burglary, 29 counts of criminal damage, 17 counts of theft as well as theft of a motor vehicle.

Daniel Rioli, Shai Bolton, Mabior Chol and Marlion Pickett of the Tigers celebrate with the Premiership Trophy after the 2020 AFL Grand Final match. Picture: Getty Images

The 2019 and 2020 medals were stolen from the lightning-fast small man’s Malvern home on December 18, 2022.

Mr Knott made an unsuccessful self-represented bid for bail in the Moorabbin Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, where he spoke of his 15-year addiction to drugs, namely methamphetamine.

“I’ve got a bad drug habit. I’ve got bad mental health issues,” Mr Knott said.

“I’ve been trying to get myself into rehab and do the right thing.”

The court heard he made full admissions to the burglaries, in which a sledgehammer was allegedly used to remove tills and approximately $6000 cash from dozens of unoccupied businesses including cafes, bakeries and restaurants in Brighton, Chelsea Heights, Dingley Village, Hampton and Sandringham between 20 July and 15 August this year.

No details about Bolton’s medals were heard in court.

Senior Constable Rebecca Mayoll of the Moorabbin Criminal Investigation Unit told the court Mr Knott was an unacceptable risk to the community, having allegedly committed the burglaries with two unknown co-offenders while on bail.

Magistrate Robert Stary denied bail to Knott, saying it was an “inescapable conclusion” that releasing him back into the community would endanger public safety and welfare.

“By failing to adequately address his drug problem, he’s not been rehabilitated and the community has not been protected,” Magistrate Stary said.

Bolton was on an off-season trip to his home state of Western Australia when the thieves struck.

“It is very saddening to have items as cherished as my premiership medals taken this way,” he later told Herald Sun.

AFL Spokesperson Jay Allen said the medal was one of the competition’s most cherished awards and the theft had left Bolton devastated.

“An AFL Premiership medal is one of the most cherished awards in our game and we know how devastated Shai was when they were stolen,” he said.

“On behalf of everyone at the AFL and the Richmond Football Club, we thank the Victoria Police for locating his 2019 and 2020 medals and look forward to getting them back to Shai shortly.”

Bolton has been a major factor in Richmond’s mighty era, playing in two of the club’s three premierships.

There have been reports that he may end up back in West Australia if the Tigers can negotiate a satisfactory trade with West Coast or Fremantle.