A Victorian man with an 'unusual and unhealthy interest' in doomsday prepping has been sentenced to more than two years in prison after police discovered weapons, ammunition, explosives and body armour hidden on his property near Melbourne.
Aleziah Spiers, 30, pleaded guilty earlier this year to possessing a trafficable quantity of firearms and summary offences. Judge Michael Tinney of the County Court of Victoria said Spiers developed a 'strange' doomsday mindset after being discharged from the army for cannabis use in 2016.
Police searched Spiers's Clarkefield property in June last year, uncovering 16 firearms, including three machine guns, along with ammunition, explosives and body armour hidden in a shipping container and shearing shed. The trafficable quantity threshold for the offence is two firearms.
Spiers, who briefly worked as a youth justice worker and was an amateur actor in post-apocalyptic horror films, acquired the weapons from another doomsday prepper. Judge Tinney noted an expert witness said Spiers's survivalist activities were partly motivated by a dysfunctional need to enhance self-esteem by being viewed as a leader.
Spiers was sentenced to two years and four months in prison, with a non-parole period of 15 months. Judge Tinney said Spiers, a father of two with no criminal history, had a good chance of rehabilitation and urged him to abandon his survivalist mindset.
