Director of Public Prosecutions v Middleton

[2017] VCC 887

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA  Revised

Not Restricted Suitable for Publication

AT MELBOURNE CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 17-00073

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

SHANE MIDDLETON RENEE COMEADOW SIMON MIDDLETON ANGELOS ANAGNOSTOU

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE STUART
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATEOF HEARING:
DATEOF SENTENCE:	28 June 2017
CASE MAYBE CITEDAS:	DPP v Middleton
MEDIUMNEUTRALCITATION:	[2017] VCC 887

Subject: Catchwords: Legislation Cited: Cases Cited: Sentence:

EX-TEMPORE REASONS FOR SENTENCE

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APPEARANCES:  Counsel  Solicitors

For the Director of Public Prosecutions

Ms C. Hollingworth

For Accused Shane Middleton

Ms S. Pratt

For Accused Comeadow         Mr T. Magazis

For Accused Simon Middleton

Mr R. Lawrence

For Accused Anagnostou        Mr A. Patton

VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT REPORTING SERVICE

7/436 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne Vic 3000 - Telephone [phone]

HIS HONOUR:

1Shane Middleton, you have pleaded guilty to two charges, one of armed robbery and another of attempting to pervert the course of justice. You, Renee Comeadow, have pleaded guilty to one charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice, as have you, Simon Middleton and you, Angelos Anagnostou.

2The maximum penalties for both offences of armed robbery and attempting to pervert the course of justice is 25 years.

3The circumstances surrounding the offending are set out in Exhibit 1, the summary of prosecution opening, which I rely upon heavily for the purposes of my sentencing remarks.

4You, Shane Middleton, are the older brother of Simon Middleton. He was known by the nickname "Snapper" and Angelos Anagnostou was known by the nickname "Hectic”.

5The circumstances that surround the armed robbery that relate to you, Shane Middleton, are that on Tuesday 21 July 2015 the victim, Harry Goulousis, who was 25 years at the time, became aware that his friend Luke owed money to you. You were at the time a member of the Mongols outlaw motor cycle gang. The victim offered to lend his friend Luke some money to help him repay his debt after he had been paid by his employer the following day. Whilst he was at the address his phone was used by Luke to contact one of Luke's friends, Ellie Kellett.

6The following night, Wednesday 22 July 2015, the victim withdrew $300 from his bank account as he had been paid that day for his work as a truck driver. He attended at Luke's home to lend him the money but the offer was declined. After spending some time at the address the victim left. He phoned a friend to arrange the purchase of some methylamphetamine, or ice, to consume. He was able to purchase one and a half points of ice for $50.  The victim decided

to smoke the ice at a park not far from his house and he drove to Kellett Reserve in Clayton South. Once he got there, he contacted the female, Ellie Kellett, and asked her if she wanted to meet up with him to smoke ice with him. She agreed and he provided her with the location of the park where he was. He then waited for her to arrive.

7Unbeknown to the victim, at that stage Ellie Kellett was driving around Clayton in her vehicle with you, Shane Middleton. You drove to Kellett Reserve together, arriving at 10.55 in the evening. Harry Goulousis recognised her car which parked close behind his vehicle. He looked up and saw a male who he did not know exit the car from the front passenger door. This male was you, Shane Middleton. You walked over to Mr Goulousis, the victim, and he wound down his window to talk to you. You immediately reached in through the window. You turned the ignition off and took the keys, causing the interior lights to turn on. You then pulled your jumper up and revealed a silver handgun which you then pulled out from the front of your pants. You pointed the gun at Mr Goulousis' head and told him to "get the fuck out of the car." The victim was scared and shaking and did exactly as he was told. Before he got out he tried to stash his wallet between the passenger seat and centre console. He then got out of the car and asked you what was going on. You swung at him with an open palm. Mr Goulousis stood back and your hand just clipped him. You then replied, "I'm fucking robbing you dickhead", and told him to sit down in the front of the car. You then said to him, "if you try to run, I'll pop ya." You asked Mr Goulousis where his valuables were and began to search through the vehicle. The interior lights were still on and you sat in the front of the car which allowed the victim to get a better look at you. Mr Goulousis later described you as about 185 centimetres tall with a clipped beard and tattoos on his face.

8You threw some items from the car on the ground and placed other items into your pocket. As you were searching, you kept looking around to see if anybody else was around in the area.  You took a Samsung Galaxy mobile phone, two

iPhones and the ice that Mr Goulousis had purchased earlier, the subject of Charge 1 of armed robbery on the indictment.

9You then searched the rear of the vehicle including the seat pockets and floor.

You opened the boot and removed a toolbox, placing it on the ground. You lifted the bonnet of  the  vehicle,  searched  the  engine  area  and  asked Mr Goulousis where his wallet was. You then went to the passenger side of the vehicle, pulled the seat forward and found the wallet. You pulled Mr Goulousis' licence out of his wallet and told him that if he went to the police, you knew where he lived. You put the licence back in the wallet and then took the wallet which contained the cash and personal cards belonging to Mr Goulousis. You walked back to the rear of the victim's car and picked up the toolbox. You yelled for the boot to be opened in Ms Kellett's car and you placed the toolbox in the boot of her vehicle. You then told Mr Goulousis to get in the boot of his own car. He said, "What?" And you said, "get in the boot before I fucking put you in the boot, cunt." You then went to reach for the gun again from under your jumper and, as a result, Mr Goulousis complied and got into the boot of his own car. As he was doing so he could see Ellie Kellett inside her car looking at him. You closed the boot and then opened it again and told Mr Goulousis that he had a minute to get out as you were going to torch the car. You then closed the boot again, leaving Mr Goulousis terrified.

10Mr Goulousis listened to the vehicle belonging to Ellie Kellet drive off. He got himself in a positon where he was able to kick the back seat forward and get out. He looked around and did not see any smoke or flames. He ran to a nearby house and knocked on the door telling the occupant he needed help. The resident agreed to contact police. Mr Goulousis said to tell them that his car was in the park and that his name was Harry. He then ran to his own home, retrieved a spare key to his car and got his mother to drive him back to the park. By the time he arrived at the park the police were there. Mr Goulousis told them what had occurred and that the man who robbed him was a suspected member

of the Mongols.

11Mr Goulousis spoke with detectives the following morning and told them that the male that had held him up had a tattooed face. Later that day he told his friend Luke what had occurred the previous night, giving him a description of the person. Luke told him that the description sounded like the person he owed money to, Shane Middleton.

12Mr Goulousis used Facebook to search for the name "Shane Middleton" and found a photograph of you with the same tattoos on your face which identified you as having a connection with the Mongols outlaw motor cycle gang. He immediately recognised you as the person who had robbed him the night before and contacted police informing them of your identity. The victim did not want to make a statement at that time as he was concerned for his safety and that of his family.

13Investigations by police reveal that in September 2015 you were using the victim's mobile phone as your own. On 2 November 2015, police executed a search warrant at 23 Mintaro Way in Seabrook, your home address, which was apparently known to the police due to an unrelated investigation. During the course of the search police located a number of items belonging to Mr Goulousis including a health card, a Victorian Ambulance membership card, a WorkSafe Construction Induction card, a Westpac debit card and Flybuys cards. Investigators also located a silver-coloured handgun in the garage together with various rounds of ammunition. You were remanded in custody on 2 November 2015.

14The victim made his first statement to police on 13 November 2015. You were subsequently interviewed in relation to the armed robbery on 9 December 2015 and exercised your right to remain silent during the course of that interview.

15This is a particularly serious example of an armed robbery. You had in your possession, then you displayed, the silver handgun. You used it to threaten the

victim, Mr Goulousis. The threats that you made were explicit and serious, including a threat, "if you try to run, I'll pop ya." You then went about stealing anything of worth that you could find within the victim’s car.

16Whilst you are not charged with any matter relating to the kidnapping by having Mr Goulousis get into the boot of the car and are not in any way to be sentenced in relation to any such offending, these actions serve to demonstrate the level to which you were prepared to go in order to intimidate Mr Goulousis. You sought to terrify him and you succeeded.

17General deterrence, that is, deterring others from engaging in conduct such as this, is the primary sentencing factor in relation to this matter, just as the need for just punishment to be imposed as well as denunciation of your behaviour. There is a need to deter you from such offending at such a high level.

18It is necessary to supplement what is in the prosecution opening in order to truly appreciate the effect your behaviour had on your victim at that time. According to his statement, which became Exhibit 4 on the plea, the events unfolded in this way:

"It all happened so quickly that I was dumbfounded. The guy pointed the gun at me head and said 'Get the fuck out of the car.' I said something like 'What have I done wrong?' He said 'get the fuck out before I get you out.' At this point I was shitting myself and was shaking. I did exactly what he said and got out of the car."

19At little later in his statement he recalled:

"My driver's door was open and interior light still on. He asked me where my valuables were.  I didn't reply cos I was too scared."

20Towards the end of describing this episode he describes the circumstances surrounding the period concerning the boot of the vehicle:

"As it was closed he said something but I couldn't hear him. I replied, 'Can't hear you, what did you say?' He then walked back and opened the boot and said 'You've got a minute to get out cos I'm torching the car.' Then he closed the boot again. At this point I am absolutely terrified. I've got no phone on me to give me light. The boot light isn't on cos it's shut. I heard the passenger door of Ellie's car close and take off. I lay still for about 5 seconds to see if I could hear anyone else around. I was terrified he would either shoot at it or take me for a ride and torch it like he said. I got myself into a position where I could use all my force to kick the back seat forward. I kicked and the seat went forward. I popped my head out of the boot and saw Ellie's car leaving the park. I looked around and I couldn't see any smoke or flame then climbed back into the back seat then hopped out of the car."

21It is plain to me that what you did to Mr Goulousis was designed to intimidate him as well as to terrify him. The purpose of intimidating him was to ensure that he would take no further action in relation to what had just occurred, but he did. It is to be borne in mind that Mr Goulousis at the time was but a 25 year old man. You engaged in this activity without compunction.

22I now turn to the charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice, which is Charge 2 on the indictment in relation to you, Shane Middleton and you, Ms Comeadow and a summary charge of committing an indictable offence whilst on bail in relation to you, Ms Comeadow, which carries with it a maximum penalty of three months' imprisonment on two other separate indictments. Mr Simon Middleton and Mr Anagnostou have also pleaded guilty to that same charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The attempt to pervert the course of justice occurred over a period of no less than six months between 1 December 2015 and 3 May 2016.

23It is alleged that all four of you participated in a joint criminal enterprise in order

to pervert the course of justice by approaching Mr Goulousis, the victim of the armed robbery, in order for him to withdraw his statement that he had made to Victoria Police on 13 November 2015. Mr Goulousis had not been prepared to make any statement prior to that occasion and it was only made it at a point in time when you, Mr Shane Middleton, had been remanded in custody, on 2 November 2015 for an unrelated matter.

24During that period in custody your phone calls in prison were monitored via the Arunta system. Between 1 December 2015 and 30 March 2016 police monitored 47 calls between you, Shane Middleton, and your brother, Simon Middleton as well as calls between you and your partner, Renee Comeadow, discussing your upcoming court hearing, the statement made against you and the topic of getting Mr Goulousis to withdraw his statement.

25During the course of discussions in December 2015 you discussed speaking about an individual you referred to as "Hectic", this being the nickname for Angelos Anagnostou. It is apparent that Anagnostou knew the victim Goulousis as they had previously been at school together. Call charge records show that you, Simon Middleton, contacted Angelos Anagnostou by phone several times on 20 December 2015. According to Mr Anagnostou, you rang him and told him to meet you at his factory in Clayton South. Mr Anagnostou arrived at the factory at approximately 9 or 10 pm. You, Simon Middleton, discussed with Anagnostou that your brother Shane was in gaol and that a guy named Harry had made a statement against him. You said words to the effect that "this little cunt needs to change his statement", and told Anagnostou that he needed to speak to Mr Goulousis. Mr Anagnostou commented that he had helped Shane Middleton in the past. You, Simon Middleton said that you could get Anagnostou $5000. Shortly after that Anagnostou left.

26On 24 December 2015, at 9.14 am, you, Shane Middleton and you, Renee Comeadow, had a phone conversation discussing whether Simon had spoken to ‘Hectic’, being Mr Anagnostou.  You, Ms Comeadow, said that you needed

to know what needs to be done and if you cannot get hold of Simon you would go to the tattoo shop and speak to someone else to do it. In addition, that morning a recorded conversation between you, Shane Middleton, and your brother Simon revealed that Simon had told you that he had spoken to Hectic. Simon said, "yeah, yeah, yeah, gunna go." Later that same day, in another call you, Simon Middleton, told your brother Shane that you had been trying to get onto Hectic, to which you replied, "that stuff I've been telling you needs to get done." You, Simon Middleton, said that you would not let your brother down, your brother telling you to chase it up and go to Hectic's mum's house to ask.

27On 28 December 2015, in a recorded conversation, you, Simon Middleton, reported that Hectic had not got hold of ‘that guy’. You, Shane Middleton, replied that he “needs to get to the cunt and tell him to change it" or you would have to do another five years. It seems that you, Shane Middleton, were upset that your brother was not doing enough.

28Call records show that you,  Simon  Middleton,  sent  SMS  messages  to Ms Comeadow on 30 December 2015 and 4 January 2016.

29On 5 January 2016 there was another recorded conversation between Simon and Shane Middleton. You, Shane Middleton, asked your brother whether he had seen Hectic. Simon replied that he had not but that he had got it down through someone else. You then asked Simon if it was looking good, to which your brother replied, "yes."

30During that day you, Ms Comeadow, sent messages to Mr Anagnostou using the Facebook personal message application, Messenger. Mr Anagnostou had met you once before when you had accompanied Shane Middleton to see him. You sent Mr Anagnostou a message introducing yourself as Shane Middleton's ‘missus’ and you told him that you needed to pass on a message. Mr Anagnostou enquired if it was the same thing that Snapper (nickname for Simon Middleton) had seen him about and you confirmed that it was.  You, Renee

Comeadow, tried to find out if it was all sorted, as apparently Shane was getting annoyed that you were unable to confirm whether it was sorted. That night a further recorded conversation indicated that you confirmed with Shane Middleton that you had messaged Mr Anagnostou and you read out the messages to him.

31The following day, 6 January 2016, in a recorded conversation, you, Shane Middleton, asked Ms Comeadow if she had got hold of Snapper. She indicated that she had not and that Simon Middleton had not replied to her calls or texts. You asked what Ange, a reference to Mr Anagnostou, said and she said nothing more than what she had already told you.

32Later that day you and your brother spoke on the phone. You, Shane Middleton, told your brother to answer Ms Comeadow's messages. You, Simon Middleton, confirmed it was good news, saying, "Shane said that is sweet as he is waiting to go home." You then called Ms Comeadow and told her that she needs to tell Snapper (Simon Middleton) that, "the guy needs to do it and put in a complaint." I understand that to be a reference to a complaint against police.

33Later that morning the two  of  you  speak,  you,  Shane  Middleton,  calling Ms Comeadow. Ms Comeadow indicated that Simon was coming over later to speak with her. That afternoon, you, Shane Middleton and Ms Comeadow, again spoke on the phone and, you, Shane Middleton, said that if Simon did not pull through today tell him not to bother. Ms Comeadow said that she would prefer to go straight to Hectic herself so she can call him directly about what he (Shane) said. You, Ms Comeadow, said that you will sort it out and you, Shane Middleton, told Ms Comeadow that she was the only person you had out there. Later that afternoon Ms Comeadow confirmed with you that she had not heard from Simon.

34The following morning, 7 January 2016, Ms Comeadow told you that she had not heard from Snapper. She said to you words to the effect that she was happy

to do whatever and asked you just to let her know what to do and she will do it. You told her not to worry about it.

35On 10 January 2016, in a further recorded call, you, Ms Comeadow, indicated to Shane Middleton that Simon was ignoring your calls. Shane Middleton in turn asked you if you could ask Hectic, to which you responded that you will send him a message on Facebook. That same day, at about 6 pm, you sent a message via Facebook to Mr Anagnostou trying to catch up with him, telling him that you were at Shane's parents' house. Unable to arrange to meet, you, Ms Comeadow, asked Mr Anagnostou to meet with Simon, which Mr Anagnostou agreed to do. The following day, 11 January 2016, you, Ms Comeadow, confirmed with Shane Middleton that Simon had met Hectic the previous night.

36On 21 January, you, Simon Middleton, again spoke to your brother, Shane Middleton. He told you to answer Ms Comeadow's calls and you said that Ms Comeadow did not understand what she talks about on the phone. You, Shane Middleton, responded that you had asked him to do one thing and that you go to court on Monday. Indeed there was a filing hearing for the following Monday on 25 January 2016 in relation to the armed robbery charge. You, Simon Middleton, said that you was not going to talk freely about it and your brother said in response that he needed to know that it was done. You, Simon Middleton, said to wait until he sees him on a visit on Saturday, to which you, Shane Middleton, asked if it was sorted and Simon responded, "yes."

37The following month, on 20 February 2016, Angelos Anagnostou was driving his vehicle with his girlfriend Vivienne Frish as the passenger. They parked in an industrial area outside some factories. Apparently this was a place where they occasionally went to have sexual relations as they both lived with their parents at the time and were unable to see each other at home. The particular factory they parked at was a place where the victim Harry Goulousis worked, but according to Mr Anagnostou he was unaware of this fact at the time.

38When they arrived at the factory, Mr Goulousis was up a ladder doing some repairs to damage to the factory that he had previously caused with a forklift. Mr Anagnostou at that stage did not recognise him and yelled out to see if it was okay if they parked there.  Mr Goulousis indicated that it was fine.

39Angelos Anagnostou and his girlfriend sat in the vehicle and chatted and Mr Anagnostou smoked some cannabis. After about ten minutes Mr Goulousis got down from the ladder and walked past Mr Anagnostou's car. At that stage you, Mr Anagnostou, recognised the victim and called him over to the car. The victim was apprehensive as he knew that you were a close mate of Shane Middleton. Mr Anagnostou remained in the vehicle and spoke to the victim through the window. He asked Mr Goulousis whether he had made a statement about Shane. The victim replied that he had. Mr Anagnostou in turn told Mr Goulousis that he wanted him to pull the statement, to which he replied that it was out of his hands. Mr Anagnostou then requested that the victim provide him with his mobile phone number. Mr Goulousis tried to shrug off the request but you, Angelos Anagnostou, persisted and asked a second time. The victim provided you with a mobile phone that, while still active, was a number that he no longer used. Angelos Anagnostou saved the number into his own mobile phone and told Mr Goulousis, "Shane's not happy you know, he's locked up." He told the victim, "He has sent me to fix this." You, Mr Anagnostou told Mr Goulousis that Simon Middleton would give him money to pull the statement, telling him he could get up to $5000. Mr Anagnostou told Mr Goulousis that he would be in touch and that Shane's family would be calling him shortly. After this, Mr Anagnostou drove away.

40It is useful to turn to the second statement of Harry Goulousis, which became Exhibit 5 on the plea and was dated 8 March 2016.  In it Mr Goulousis writes:

"As I walked past the Ford the guy high-beamed me and yelled out, 'Harry.' This took me by surprise. I had no idea who the guy was. I slowly walked towards the driver's door to see if I could recognise

him. As I was nearly there the guy yelled 'Hey, it's Ange.' As I got to the driver's door I recognised him to be a guy I used to know back when I was hanging around the Clayton and Clarinda area back when I was younger. He’s name Angelo but everyone knows him as Hectic. When I recognised him I thought I was going to get my head kicked in. Someone had told me that he's a close mate of Shane Middleton.

Ange asked me what I was doing. I just said that I was doing a bit of work. He then goes straight and said something like 'Man, you've got to pull your statement about Shane.' I knew immediately that he was referring about the statement I made about Shane Middleton. I said something like 'I'm not getting involved with Shane.' I could see there was a chick in the front passenger seat but I didn't recognise her. Ange asked for my mobile phone number so he could call me the next day about it. I had recently changed mobile numbers so I gave him my old one, which was 0423 864 394. That phone was switched off. Ange said that he could give me money to pull the statement. He said something like 'I can get you 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 grand. Whatever you want.' I said that I wasn't interested in any cash. Throughout this whole conversation Ange remained calm. He didn't get aggressive at all. I said that I was busy and had to go. I walked back to my car and took off. I kept looking in my rear mirror but he didn't leave."

41He concludes that statement with this paragraph:

"I’m still terrified about what Shane did. It worries me he is asking people to call me and ask me to pull my statement. Obviously he's trying to organise people to pay me so I dont go ahead with the matter. I want this matter to go ahead and I am prepared to go to court to tell what happened to me but it worries me that things like

happen (sic)."

42It is fair to say that Harry Goulousis, aged 25, demonstrated throughout a firmness in position and a gutsiness of disposition. Without those characteristics it is highly probable that that approach by Anagnostou would have had the desired effect.

43In the Director of Public Prosecutions v Oksuz [2015] 47 VR 731, in the judgment of Kyrou JA, with whom Redlich JA agreed, Kyrou JA, at paragraph 90, wrote:

"The Crown cited decisions of this Court which have recognised that the offence of attempting to pervert the course of justice strikes at the heart of our legal system and the administration of justice. The Crown noted that offenders who have been remanded on serious charges would greatly benefit if witnesses against them were persuaded to change or withdraw their evidence. Accordingly, so it was said, general deterrence should have constituted a significant, if not paramount, sentencing consideration in this case and a sentence should have been imposed that was sufficiently stern to deter accused persons from interfering with witnesses. The Crown submitted that the sentence passed was inadequate to meet this purpose."

44It is sufficient to say at this stage that what His Honour wrote then is entirely apt to this particular case.

45His Honour continued later at paragraph 94 and following, observing: "In my opinion, the individual sentence of six months for the APCJ

charge is derisory for the following reasons.

First, the sentence is entirely out of proportion to the seriousness of the offence as reflected in the maximum penalty of 25 years and judicial pronouncements such as those made in R v Johns and DPP v Aydin. The offence is serious because the conduct that constitutes

because it involves an offender seeking to deter witnesses from giving evidence -- or giving truthful evidence -- in court proceedings. Where the offence is committed in the context of a criminal proceeding, the aim of the offending conduct is to undermine the Crown's ability to secure a conviction against an accused person and thus bring him or her to justice. The serious harm to public safety and the rule of law resulting from such offending conduct is obvious.

Secondly, the sentence failed to reflect the serious nature of the offending in the present case. I agree with the Crown's submission that the matters set out at [88] above are indicative of the gravity of the respondent's offending. The communications to Patrick through the prison system and the communications to Dominic by Tony were part of a course of persistent and particularly grave conduct aimed at intimidating Patrick and Frank and forcing Frank to recant his version of events which implicated the respondent. The intended and likely effect on Frank must be seen in the context of the threats of violence constituting the blackmail offence and the serious gunshot injuries inflicted on Mr Randall."

46In concluding the quotation from His Honour's judgment, at paragraph 100 His Honour observed:

"Fourthly, the sentence of six months was substantially below the range of sentencing options reasonably available to the judge. As the Crown pointed out, individual sentences of between two and four years have regularly been imposed for the offence of attempting to pervert the course of justice."

47Here, the attempt to pervert the course of justice involved the following matters:

(1)No less than four persons and potentially a fifth person nicknamed "Junior" apparently a Mr Jamieson;

(2)It involved a lengthy period from 1 December 2015 to 3 May, some five

months;

(3)It involved avoiding of criminal proceedings for the very serious charge of armed robbery which itself carries with it a maximum of 25 years' imprisonment, this instance of armed robbery being a grave example of that offence;

(4)It involved a physical approach to the sole witness and victim, already apprehensive about his safety;

(5)That physical approach, although there was no violence, actually occurred;

(6)The approach involved the offer of a sum up to $5000 to change or withdraw his statement;

(7)For each  of  the four  of  you  there  were  numerous opportunities  to withdraw from this criminal enterprise; and

(8)This all occurred in a setting in which the instigator of this criminal enterprise, you, Shane Middleton, was in prison.

48The fact that Parliament has set a maximum penalty of 25 years evidences the gravity with which Parliament views this type of offending, and sensibly so. It is plain that in this case general deterrence for such offending of the kind before me is the paramount sentencing consideration.

49It has been submitted, in particular by Mr Lawrence, that his client, Simon Middleton, did not know aspects of the detail of what was going on and, in particular, that he only engaged in one aspect of this enterprise, namely the approach to Mr Anagnostou. This is true, but it does not define his involvement as he was involved before and he was involved after. Having done what he was required to do, he had nothing further to do. He armed Anagnostou with the information that had to be passed on to Mr Goulousis and he knew the

gravity of the offending that his brother had been charged with. It is not unusual for an accused in such a charge to have but a superficial understanding of the offending that is sought to be avoided. It is sufficient, in my view, for a party in question to know the nature of the alleged offending which is sought to be avoided, know the charge and appreciate the purpose of the enterprise to pervert the course of justice and so gauge that individual's criminality.

50The more serious the alleged offending sought to be avoided, the duration of the criminal enterprise engaged in and the means used, evidences the gravity of the attempt to pervert the course of justice. I assess this particular attempt to pervert the course of justice as being a particularly grave example of it by almost any yardstick save actual physical violence.

51I will now turn to personal matters, first in relation to you, Shane Middleton.

52Whilst you do have a criminal history, in the main, your offending was dealt with in the Children's Court and all subsequent offending was dealt with by way of fines, thus your criminal history is of limited, if any, moment in this matter.

53On 17 November 2016 I sentenced you to a total effective sentence of five years with a minimum of three years for one charge of trafficking in a commercial quantity of a drug of dependence, possession of a drug of dependence, unlicensed person to store in an insecure way, being a non-prohibited person to possess a registered category handgun, handling stolen goods and recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime.

54In paragraphs 17 to 33 of my sentencing remarks, I deal in considerable detail with your personal background and quote from letters written in relation to you by your mother and an Adam Thurston who offered you employment, as well as a psychological report of Ms Jackson. I have carefully reread that material and incorporate those remarks into my sentencing reasons today.

55As  to  your  prospects  of  rehabilitation,  I  then  assessed  them  as  being

reasonable. Now, aware of the offending for which you have pleaded guilty of armed robbery and attempting to pervert the course of justice, I assess your prospects of rehabilitation as guarded.

56You are now 27 years of age. You are one of three children, Simon, your co-accused, being older. You are engaged to Ms Comeadow and the two of you have a daughter who is three years of age. You are apparently devoted to your daughter.

57You attended school up until Year 8 upon which you obtained a pre-apprenticeship in carpentry. You commenced that apprenticeship but did not complete it as you abandoned it after two years. You then spent two years working in the glass industry, installing shower screens and balustrades. You have worked in the construction industry and driven a tow truck which you partially own with your brother Simon.

58Prior to your arrest in 2015 you were in the process of obtaining the necessary skills and qualifications to become a welder. I have no doubt that should you decide when you are released to become a useful member of this community, you have the skills.

59Here, you have pleaded guilty to both charges. In relation to the armed robbery, that guilty plea came forward after a full committal hearing, so though it is not an early plea, it is one which I consider to be at the earliest reasonable opportunity. The Crown do not gainsay that.

60Further, in relation to the attempt to pervert the course of justice, you have pleaded guilty at the very earliest opportunity, thus the need for two trials potentially, or one, has been obviated. The utility of this must be taken into account and I do. It could well have been that something in the order of two to three, if not, four weeks would have been occupied in dealing with those two matters but for your pleas of guilty.

61I do not intend to address your sporting ambitions nor your use of drugs. They are set out in my earlier reasons for sentencing you on 17 November 2016.

62Having already sentenced you to a period of five years with a minimum of three years, it is now  necessary for me to sentence you to further periods of imprisonment on the two charges of armed robbery and attempting to pervert the course of justice. There is, as I have said, a need to ensure the sentence that I impose is one that will not only deter others, but also deter you from further offending. It is critical that in sentencing you I look to the totality of the sentences and to the individual sentences to ensure that in total I am satisfied that the appropriate sentence and sentences are correct and appropriate.

63Stand up, Mr Middleton.

64On the charge of armed robbery, I sentence you to a period of four and a half years' imprisonment. I direct that two and a half years of that sentence be served cumulatively upon the sentences that you are presently undergoing. I state that but for your plea of guilty, pursuant to section 6AAA of the Sentencing Act, I would have imposed a sentence of six years' imprisonment.

65On Charge 2 of attempting to pervert the course of justice, I sentence you to be imprisoned for a period of four years, and I direct that two and a half years of that four years be served cumulatively upon the sentences you are presently undergoing and on the sentence of armed robbery, Charge 1. But for your pleas of guilty, I would have imposed a sentence of five and a half years. This produces a total effective sentence of ten years' imprisonment. I direct that you not be eligible for release on parole until you have served eight of those ten years of imprisonment.  I state that pre-sentence detention totals 126 days.

66Remove Mr Middleton, please.

67I will take a break before I continue with my sentencing remarks.

68(Short adjournment)

69Turning to your personal circumstances, Renee Comeadow. Your prior criminal history, such as it is, is of no moment for my sentencing purposes. I treat you as a person who has not been dealt with before in any criminal court.

70You are 28 years old. You have no drug, alcohol or mental health issues whatsoever and are the parent of your daughter Ava, who is three years old. You are living on single parent's benefits and, having passed Year 12, you have worked as a bank teller and a bar manager in the CBD from the time you left school until the birth of your child. In addition, you have undertaken a double diploma course in community services and youth work.

71Whilst, in my view, you were a willing participant in this criminal enterprise, I cannot help but think that you became involved only at the behest of your partner, Shane Middleton. But become involved you did, over a long period of time. Of all who were involved in this, other than Shane Middleton, you perhaps knew most of what was going on.  You were in it from beginning to the end.

72I have already articulated the gravity of the offending that you have involved yourself in, but, given your background and your plea of guilty, I am satisfied that you do have some insight into what you have done and some remorse. In addition, your plea of guilty has the utility value of avoiding a contested committal and trial.

73That I must sentence you, a young mother, is a tragedy. I assess your prospects of rehabilitation as excellent. As it is with Simon Middleton, the need for specific deterrence, deterring you, is lessened. I do not expect you to reoffend. You have had the experience of 41 days in gaol and it was a shock to you. You have none of the issues that much of the prison population at Dame Phyllis Frost has.

74As to the summary charge of committing an indictable offence whilst on bail, I intend to order that sentence to be wholly concurrent with the sentence on the attempt to pervert the course of justice.

75I turn to your personal circumstances, Simon Middleton. You, too, have a prior criminal history of no moment whatsoever, and I put it entirely aside as I have with Ms Comeadow.

76I have dealt with the issue of your role in this matter. I detect that there was a tardiness, a lethargy in your involvement, but you did as you were bid and you played an essential role in this attempt to pervert the course of justice, for it was you who approached Anagnostou and provided him with what he needed to do in order for him to approach Mr Goulousis. That approach also involved the offer of a not inconsiderable sum of money, up to $5000.

77You are 30 years of age and the eldest of your three siblings. You grew up in Bentleigh and went to the Cheltenham Secondary College until the age of 15. Like your brother, you demonstrated natural sporting talents but did not perform well academically. You left school to complete a pre-apprenticeship in carpentry, as did your brother. You completed your apprenticeship, working for a local carpenter and being employed by a company specialising in insurance work. Yours is a good work history, having worked as a carpenter with a number of firms and in 2014 you established your own chroming business which was, unfortunately, ultimately unsuccessful. Since its closure you have been living at your parents' home. You have had one significant relationship, lasting for some three years and ending in 2015.

78In 2008 you and your brother were involved in a physical fight at a party and a friend of yours, Corey McGoon, tried to stop the fight. He was prevented from doing so by another individual, Kan Sampson Ramoni. Later on there was an altercation between those latter two, during which Mr McGoon was fatally stabbed. You and your brother were present when Mr McGoon died. This has had a profound effect on you and complicated your relationship with your brother Shane.

79You, like your brother Shane and Ms Comeadow, pleaded guilty to the offence

of attempting to pervert the course of justice at the very earliest of opportunities. I have already indicated that I consider that to have a utility value that I must take into account and do.

80You, at the age of 30, with a good work record, have, in my view and as submitted on your behalf, good prospects of rehabilitation, your problems with alcohol and drugs apparently behind you.

81Your father has written a letter, which became Exhibit Simon M1, in it he writes:

"The things I can confidently tell you about my son is that he always helped his friends whenever they have asked, often to the detriment of himself. He is loyal to his friends and family and has a generous nature and will go out of his way to give or do whatever he can for others.

In terms of his work, he has an amazing work ethic that makes me very proud. He has always had that quality and I have seen him push himself and work long hours to complete a job. As a carpenter, he is a competent and capable tradesman.

Simon will always have my love and support and I will always be proud of the person he is. My greatest desire for him is to see him happy and successful in life."

82A relative of yours, Kendra Parker, writes of you,

"In his family life, Simon has always been a caring individual. At my mother's funeral almost 3 years ago, Simon attended and reminisced on the importance of family and the connections it brings. He has continued to come to our family Christmas gatherings and has shown care and genuine interest in his extended family during these annual get-togethers."

83Like Ms Comeadow, because of the absence of any relevant criminal history and because I am satisfied that again you were inveigled into this attempt to pervert the course of justice by your brother. You became involved for that reason, to assist him. As with Ms Comeadow, it is highly unlikely that you will ever reoffend. Therefore, deterring you from further offending is of little moment. Nonetheless, as with Ms Comeadow, general deterrence is the paramount consideration as others must be deterred from this type of offending.

84Ms Comeadow and Mr Simon Middleton stand.

85I sentence each of you, on the charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice, to three years' imprisonment and I set a minimum non-parole period of two years' imprisonment.

86On the charge of committing an indictable offence whilst on bail, I sentence you, Ms Comeadow, to a period of one month which is to be served entirely concurrently with Charge 1 of attempting to pervert the course of justice.

87In relation to both of you, but for your pleas of guilty, I would have sentenced you each to four and a half years' imprisonment and set a minimum non-parole period of three years.

88Insofar  as  pre-sentence  detention  is   concerned,   in   relation   to   you, Ms Comeadow, I declare 41 days as pre-sentence detention.

89In relation to you, Simon Middleton, 104 days pre-sentence detention.

90Take a seat, please.

91There is a s.464ZF application?

92MS HOLLINGWORTH: Yes, in relation to Renee Comeadow.

93HIS HONOUR: Yes. You have nothing to say about that? I will grant that application. It is by consent, I gather.

94MS HOLLINGWORTH: Yes, that's what I was told.

95HIS HONOUR:  Yes. You may remove Ms Comeadow and Mr Middleton.

96Now in relation to Mr Anagnostou, what is the situation, Mr - - -

97MR PATTON: No update, Your Honour. I have heard nothing further and I had asked the lady I spoke to contact me if anything changed significantly. I haven't been advised of anything, Your Honour.

98HIS HONOUR:  In the circumstances, I will issue a warrant for the arrest of Mr Anagnostou.

99MR PATTON: As Your Honour pleases.

100HIS HONOUR: I should have asked in the presence of the other persons, are there any corrections that I need make other than some obvious ones which I will correct in revising my sentencing remarks?

101MS HOLLINGWORTH: No, Your Honour.

102COUNSEL:  No, Your Honour.

103COUNSEL:  None I noted, Your Honour.

104HIS HONOUR: Thank you.

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