Alan Tonkin, Victor Harbor business owner, pleads not guilty over firearms charges as 19 counts dropped
An adored Victor Harbor businessman will take his matter to trial after pleading not guilty to possessing and selling unlicensed firearms, a court has heard.
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A well known Fleurieu businessman will face trial after denying allegations he possessed and was selling unlicensed firearms, a court has heard.
Alan Jeffery Tonkin, 76, appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Thursday where he pleaded not guilty to 19 different firearms offences.
Prosecution withdrew the remaining 19 charges.
Mr Tonkin, of Victor Harbor, was previously charged with 27 counts of possessing various categories of firearms without a licence, eight counts of supplying a prescribed firearm to an unlicensed person, an aggravated count of possessing a firearm without licence, an aggravated count of possessing a sound modifier and one count of contravening a provision of the code of practice.
Court documents released to The Advertiser show Mr Tonkin, affectionately known by the community as ‘Shonky Tonks’, allegedly sold and possessed 12-gauge shotguns, hunting rifles, various calibre handguns and air rifles.
Mr Tonkin is known for his business Tonkins Sports, located on Ocean St in Victor Harbor, which sells firearms, fishing, camping equipment and more, according to its Facebook page.
He is also listed as a life member of the Victor Harbor Cricket Club.
A Fleurieu Peninsula magazine called Coast Lines in 2018 ran a feature on Mr Tonkin, with the headline ‘The Man They Call Shonky Tonks’ while inside describing it as a term he “finds endearing”.
On Thursday, Mr Tonkin was remanded on continuing bail and will now front the District Court in May.
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Originally published as Alan Tonkin, Victor Harbor business owner, pleads not guilty over firearms charges as 19 counts dropped
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