Anthony Reuban Troy Wells jailed for 12 months on weapons charge

Police found a bullet on the floor of the police “pod” which they suspected had been secreted in the prisoner’s buttocks.

Anthony Reuban Troy Wells

A Toowoomba man found with a sawn off shotgun which had a laser scope duct taped to the barrel has been jailed for 12 months.

Police claim Anthony Reuban Troy Wells had been found hiding in the bathroom of a Toowoomba residence on August 7.

A sawn off shotgun with a laser scope attached by duct tape had been found in the bathroom and four shotgun bullets had been found in his backpack, Toowoomba Magistrates Court heard.

Another shotgun bullet was found on the floor of the police “pod” after the 26-year-old was taken to the watch house and police suspected the bullet had been secreted on his person, police prosecutor Cameron Francis told the court.

Wells had a history of possessing weapons and drugs and at the time of committing these offences he was subject to a suspended sentence and only off parole a matter of months for similar offending, Mr Francis said.

Wells appeared by video link from Arthur Gorrie Correctional Centre on Friday to plead guilty to unlawfully possessing a weapon and ammunition as well as associated charges.

His solicitor Chelsea Saldumbide, of McConnell and Saldumbide Criminal Lawyers, told the court her client was 25 at the time of the offences and since his arrest he had spent 70 days in custody.

That time in custody had not been easy as the prison had been in lockdown, meaning prisoners had to be in their cells 20 hours a day, she said.

Her client needed a longer period of supervision in the community when released from jail and Ms Saldumbide asked that her client be afforded immediate release on parole.

However, Magistrate Howard Osborne sentenced Wells to 12 months in jail but, declaring 70 days as time already served under the sentence, ordered he be released on parole on November 11 after having served three months.