A man has been sentenced in court for breaking into his former parents-in-law’s Shepparton home and stealing two guns.
Phillip Portea, 44, of Shepparton, was found guilty by a jury in Shepparton County Court of two counts of theft of a firearm, burglary and theft.
He was acquitted by the jury of two more counts of theft of a firearm, with these charges relating to two other guns.
Portea also pleaded guilty to the theft of a van, as well as summary charges of failing to stop on police direction, four counts of driving while disqualified, and making a false report to police.
In sentencing Portea, Judge Geoffrey Chettle said Portea and possibly other people broke into his ex-wife’s parents’ home at 4am on October 19, 2021, while they were away.
There, he stole a Winchester .22 calibre bolt action rifle and a Mossberg air rifle.
Jewellery, $500 in cash, personal documents and a CCTV hard drive were also taken.
The guns were found by a passer-by at 2pm the same day wrapped in a jacket under a log at Reedy Swamp in north Shepparton.
The prosecution said Portea knew about the guns at the property because he had visited the house many times while he was married.
The break-in and theft was not discovered until two days after it happened.
The court was also told Portea had stolen a van from a Shepparton business on October 13 or 14, 2021.
He spray-painted it in another colour to try to hide its identity.
CCTV showed Portea driving it several times on October 19, 20 and 22 in 2021.
On the third occasion, police tried to stop it, but it drove off.
On October 28, 2021, Portea was in the van at the IGA supermarket car park in Cobram.
When he saw police nearby, he called 000 and made a false report to police about a drug deal happening in another part of the town in an attempt to draw the police away.
In his sentencing, Judge Chettle spoke of a victim impact statement made by the owners of the house, who said they felt hurt and “invaded”.
They also spoke of feeling unsafe in their own home and having difficulty sleeping.
They also told of how the jewellery that was taken was sentimental.
Portea’s ex-wife’s victim impact statement told of her guilt at exposing her parents to Portea.
Judge Chettle said Portea’s son spoke of how he felt Portea’s decision to steal felt like a “threat to my safety”, while his daughter said she felt “hurt, fear, anger and betrayal” and told how she was now afraid to come to Shepparton.
Judge Chettle said Portea’s grandfather died in 2017, which set off mental health issues, and when his marriage ended in 2018 he turned to drugs.
A psychologist report said Portea had major depressive disorder, stimulant abuse disorder and had paranoia traits, and that he self-medicated with methamphetamines, cocaine and GHB.
Judge Chettle said Portea had “zero remorse” for his actions.
He also said Portea had “manufactured complex scenarios to explain his DNA” that was found at the scene, including suggesting that the man whose house he broke into, or the police, had planted a jimmy bar with his DNA on the bed inside the home.
Portea was jailed for three years and eight months.
He will have to serve two years and six months before becoming eligible for parole.
The 149 days he spent in pre-sentence detention will count as time already served.
Portea was also disqualified from driving for three months.
Speaking after the sentence was handed down, Portea’s ex-wife, Rita Mammone — whose parent’s home Portea broke into – said “justice had been served with the guilty verdict” by the jury.
“This is a little bit of closure for me and my family, especially for my parents for him going into their own private space,” she said.
“But no amount of time he will serve will compensate us for the mental and physical damage that has been done.
“What he did was enough to make his children scared to come back to Shepparton.”
Ms Mammone also said her mother had been devastated at the theft of the heirloom jewellery she had planned to pass down to her grandchildren, while her father was hurt about the invasion of his personal space by someone he had treated as his own son.