A 34-YEAR-OLD mother of four children walked out of the Supreme Court in Launceston after being sentenced for her part in the theft of 15 firearms - eight of which have not been recovered.
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Denim Faye O'Connor, of South Launceston, pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary, stealing, stealing firearms and unlawful trafficking in firearms on September 11, 2019.
Justice Michael Brett rejected an application for a home detention order saying it was impracticable and handed down a 12-month wholly-suspended jail sentence. She has children aged 11, four, two and five months old.
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Her co-offender Shannon Louise Brown, who had a significantly worse record, received a 15-month jail sentence when a drug treatment order was cancelled.
The suspension was conditional on O'Connor committing no crimes punishable by prison.
"I am concerned that I could be setting you up to fail," he said.
"These crimes are too serious and a substantial sentence must be imposed.
"It is up to you whether you end up serving that sentence.
"If you truly love and care for your children you will be very careful not to commit any offence."
O'Connor and Brown planned the burglary at Warrantina near Scottsdale at a time when both were addicted to ice (methylamphetamine).
O'Connor drove to the property in a silver Toyota Corolla.
The property had a state-of-the-art CCTV monitoring system which recorded them walking up to the house wearing disguises, searching for keys to the three firearm safes at 11.41am and footage of them wheeling a wheelbarrow full of firearms down the driveway at 12.04pm.
They drove to Ravenswood where firearms were unloaded in Mangana Street. Police were able to recover seven firearms but a Winchester 308 was among eight unrecovered.
Items stolen were worth about $23,200 and comprised firearms and ammunition, jewellery, $300 cash and a pair of binoculars.
Justice Brett said that it was likely the dangerous weapons were in the hands of criminals.
"It is obvious the sale of the weapons was pre-arranged and they were quickly prepared for sale," he said.
"I infer that she [Brown] arranged the sale."
He also required O'Connor to submit to supervision by a probation officer.
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