A Geelong man will spend years behind bars after admitting to a series of serious offences involving stolen firearms and property across the region and in Melbourne.
String of offences leads to arrest
Jesse Brooks, 29, faced the Geelong County Court on a raft of charges stemming from incidents in 2022 and 2023. The court heard that Brooks was involved in the theft of firearms from a property in Moolap in October 2022.
He was also charged with handling stolen goods, including a motorcycle, and committing indictable offences while on bail. Further charges related to the possession of a sawn-off .22 rifle and ammunition in Geelong West in January 2023, without holding a firearm licence.
Court hears details of crimes
Judge Michael Cahill detailed the offences during sentencing. The stolen motorcycle was taken from a Highton property in November 2022. Brooks was identified after his fingerprints were found on a fuel container left at the scene.
In a separate incident in Melbourne, Brooks was caught by police driving a stolen Mercedes. Officers discovered the sawn-off rifle, ammunition, and a stolen bank card inside the vehicle. Judge Cahill noted the serious nature of possessing such a weapon, stating it had a "sinister quality" due to its concealability.
Sentencing and time to serve
Judge Cahill sentenced Brooks to a total effective sentence of three years and nine months in prison. He set a non-parole period of two years and three months.
With time already served in pre-sentence detention, Brooks will be eligible for parole in August 2025. The judge took into account Brooks's early guilty plea, which spared the community and witnesses the cost and trauma of a trial.
He also acknowledged Brooks's difficult childhood and struggles with substance abuse but emphasised the need for community protection and deterrence given the gravity of the firearm offences.
