Drive-by shooter Sean Gregory Richardson has had four months added to his jail sentence after he was caught in possession of a .22 rifle in George Town while on parole.
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Richardson, 28, appeared in the Supreme Court in Launceston on Tuesday where he pleaded guilty to being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.
He was jailed in 2015, two years after carrying out a drive-by shooting in central Launceston which resulted in a teenage bystander being shot. Richardson was released on parole in 2017, but breached his conditions by committing serious driving offences and the firearms offence.
The court heard police searched Richardson's car while it was parked in a garage in George Town on February 13, finding the rifle.
During a police interview, Richardson claimed the rifle belonged to another person who had handed it to him while they were in the bush the day before.
He claimed he forgot the gun was in his car.
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Richardson has been in custody since the offending, and his jail term expires in September next year.
It was the second time he had breached parole by offending.
Defence counsel James Oxley said Richardson had a genuine desire to reintegrate into the community, but had limited access to rehabilitation programs while in prison.
"He is on a cycle of offending after release," he said.
The court heard Richardson had largely lived a life of crime after suffering violence as a child and engaging in substance abuse from an early age.
Justice Robert Pearce said while it was not a serious example of firearms offending, it was still unwise for Richardson to be around firearms given his criminal history.
"Mr Richardson was well aware that he should have had nothing to do with any firearm," he said.
"Because of the inherent seriousness of the crime, a sentence of imprisonment is appropriate."
Richardson was convicted and jailed for four months, to be served cumulatively on his current sentence.
He will not be eligible for parole until he served half of that sentence.