Rodney Munn pleads guilty to burglary, theft and possessing guns

Unemployed dad by day, burglar by night: A man who pilfered tools from a Geelong waterfront construction site was found with stolen guns when police came knocking.

Rodney Munn. Picture: Facebook.

A stay-at-home dad who robbed a Geelong waterfront construction site told police he found the sawn-off shotguns found in his roof in a “compost heap”.

Rodney Munn, 40, appeared in the County Court at Geelong on Thursday, and pleaded guilty to burglary, theft possessing a trafficable quantity of firearms and handling stolen goods.

Crown prosecutor Andrew Moore told the court that Munn was on bail when he and an unknown co-offender pilfered tools from the Deakin University waterfront construction site.

The pair clambered over a temporary fence and spent an hour breaking into toolboxes and rummaging through the site on October 15 last year.

On November 7 last year, Munn’s Werribee home was raided, with police finding over $7750 worth of tools from the waterfront burglary, as well as a litany of other stolen goods including tools and CCTV cameras.

Police also found three disassembled sawn-off shotguns stashed in Munn’s roof.

Munn told police he “didn’t know” what made him commit the robbery but “obviously money is an issue”.

Munn, who was supported in court by his partner, had spent 73 days in custody before being released on bail to a residential rehabilitation facility in Shepparton, where he spent 112 days.

His lawyer, barrister Michael Brugman, told the court spending time in custody and in rehab had “actually changed (Munn’s) life in a good way” despite the stress it had caused himself and his family.

“He’s managed to stay drug-free and is dealing with an addiction he hasn’t been able to rid himself of since his mid-20s,” Mr Brugman said.

Mr Brugman argued there was “nothing sinister” about the possession of the firearms, which the court heard Munn had for protection.

Judge Mullaly was sceptical, stating: “The only purpose of having sawn-off shotguns is to threaten or commit crimes.”

He noted that as the guns were found disassembled they were hardly useful if they had to be put back together in the event of a home invasion.

“He wasn’t going to pull them out of the roof cavity and use them instantly,” Judge Mullaly said.

Judge Mullaly was also sceptical of Munn’s explanation that he found the guns in a compost heap in Tarneit, calling it “implausible”.

Mr Brugman said that in any case, Munn accepted responsibility for the guns and prison was warranted, however the “structure and nature” of that sentence was up to the court.

Mr Brugman argued more time behind bars would “put him back with who he’s trying to avoid” and lead to a potential relapse.

Judge Mullaly acknowledged that would be a risk of a longer jail sentence, but said it would be a “thin response” from Munn.

“Surely if he’s got steely commitment, he would last through a further jail term,” he said.

Mr Brugman said the “proof will be in the pudding” regarding Munn’s rehabilitation, and asked the court to impose time served.

The Crown, meanwhile, argued for a longer jail term with a non-parole period.

Munn will reappear in court in February.

Originally published as Rodney Munn pleads guilty to burglary, theft and possessing guns