Three Collie brothers have been sentenced to a combined 14 and a half years in jail after being found guilty in the Bunbury District Court on Tuesday, October 30.
Rory (31), David (27), and Darcy Cowan (21) pleaded not guilty to multiple charges but, after a seven day trial, were found guilty by a jury.
The trio was found guilty of possessing 664 grams of MDMA tablets, which have a value of $66,000.
Rory was found guilty of possessing 12.67g of methamphetamine with intent to sell or supply.
David and Rory were also found guilty of possessing 13.4 grams of MDMA powder and $12,700 cash.
Their operation became unstuck on July 7, 2016 when police raided Rory’s home in Collie.
During the raid, Rory declared he had a baton under his bed he had bought online three weeks prior.
Officers had also found a hard drive, a phone, steroids, and medication.
Police then found the powdered MDMA in a piece of PVC piping on the property.
They then uncovered $10,000 in one dog kennel and $2700 in another.
The prosecution argued that the brothers were responsible for PVC pipes in tree stumps in the bush which contained more than 600 grams of MDMA tablets.
The defendants claimed in early May 2016 they were pig hunting when they came across the stumps, which held the pipes and drugs.
Rory said he did not take the drugs to police because he “knew it was illegal” and “had a drug habit”.
On May 5, Darcy set a camera up to monitor the stumps that contained the drugs. The brothers claimed they did it to see who the owners were.
However, the prosecution alleged that the brothers’ strategies “were carefully planned” and the camera was set up to ensure no one stole the drugs.
Two days after the camera was installed, footage was captured of Rory grabbing a handful of the tablets and taking them with him.
Rory said in court this was for personal use and he gave some to his friends.
The prosecutor said the meth Rory possessed was at 86 to 89 per cent purity.
During sentencing, District Court Judge Alan Troy described the brothers’ operation as “high-end” and not that of a “street-level” dealer.
He said meth and others hard drugs brought “untold misery” to people across the state, and had the potential to greatly impact small communities.
But he acknowledged that the brothers were hard-working and, eventually, could go on to positively add to society. Rory received a six-year jail term, David was given four years and nine months, and Darcy received three years and nine months. All three men were made eligible for parole.
Jemillah Dawson
I started as a journalist in 2011 and now manage mastheads in the South West of WA. My passion is politics and sport. I believe we are the voice for the community but also we inform the community of what they need to know. Email jemillah.dawson@austcommunitymedia.com.au
I started as a journalist in 2011 and now manage mastheads in the South West of WA. My passion is politics and sport. I believe we are the voice for the community but also we inform the community of what they need to know. Email jemillah.dawson@austcommunitymedia.com.au
