Joseph Andrew Tonner alleged to have hidden stolen firearms in wheelie bin fronts court
A man accused of having hidden a record number of firearms on a rural property, including allegedly concealed inside a buried wheelie bin and underneath a truck, has faced court.
Police & Courts
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A man alleged to have concealed over a record number of firearms on his southern Tasmanian property, including inside of a wheelie bin buried vertically into the ground has faced Hobart’s Supreme Court on Wednesday.
Joseph Andrew Tonner, 42, previously pleaded guilty to one count of the unlawful trafficking of firearms and one count of possessing firearms contravening a prohibition order concerning the October 2020 search of his property.
In front of Justice Robert Pearce, the court heard of the execution of two separate search warrants on October 14 and 22 at a Stonehenge property owned by Mr Tonner in southeastern Tasmania.
During these searches, Tasmania Police recovered 26 firearms, some of which were found inside a wheelie bin buried vertically in the ground and covered with rocks and tree branches.
It was part of the Crown Prosecution’s case to show that a number of the firearms’ serial numbers were listed as stolen, one being listed as stolen from as far away as Queensland.
The location of the firearms on the 50-acre property also formed part of the prosecution’s case that Mr Tonner had violated a firearm prohibition order served in 2017, preventing him from possessing or using firearms.
While Mr Tonner’s defence lawyer Kim Baumeler said Mr Tonner admitted to possessing and knowing of the whereabouts of a pistol and two shotguns used to hunt recreationally on the property or for clay pigeon shooting.
The 26 firearms found at the property are one of the largest amounts recovered by Tasmania Police at one property, with the Crown stating the sheer number, cost and care taken with the weapons indicated their use in the trafficking or sale of firearms.
“Some self-loading firearms found concealed on the property have an approximate worth between $35,000 and $45,000,” the prosecution said.
“A number of weapons were also wrapped in plastic or cryovac packaging to preserve their condition, and during the search of the property, police recovered a cryovac packaging machine and spare material in a tent.”
However, Ms Baumeler stated that Mr Tonner was only aware of some firearms and that instead the property was a “dumping ground” for other people’s items.
Justice Pearce said both prosecution and defence would need to finalise their response to each other’s argument by Friday, when a sentencing hearing would proceed.
Mr Tonner will return to Hobart’s Supreme Court on Friday, September 6.
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