A 70-year-old Maribyrnong man has been sentenced to 14 months’ jail for growing commercial quantities of cannabis at two Sunshine North properties.
Max Corbell pleaded guilty in the County Court to cultivating narcotic plants in a commercial quantity, theft of electricity and cultivation of narcotic plants.
The court hearing followed a six-month police investigation.
Two unoccupied units at Mansfield Avenue, Sunshine North, owned by Corbell and his wife were put under police surveillance in July 2013 after electricity provider Powercor notified authorities that the two properties were “consuming excessive electricity …”
The court was told surveillance revealed Corbell and his co-accused, Romano and Suzanne Falzon, were frequently spotted at the properties. Police raided them in December 2013 and seized 92 cannabis plants weighing more than 34 kilograms, an electrical bypass in the roof space of both properties and other items associated with hydroponic operations.
County Court Judge David Parsons said Corbell, who had held jobs at Telstra and the Allied Flour Mills during his working life, had struggled with feelings of inadequacy and had not adjusted to his new life when he retired at 67.
He fined Corbell $200 and sentenced him to 14 months’ jail with an eight month non-parole period.
