Street robber used drugs since ’12 or 13′
A teenage street robber has cited heavy drug use dating back to the age of 12 or 13 as the cause of his offending.
Anthony John Wheble, 19, has been held in custody since his arrest for two street robberies in July, and has proved to be a problem prisoner.
He has committed eight misconduct incidents in prison including an assault on a prison officer on November 4 which has led to another charge in the Christchurch District Court.
He has been held in the prison “pound” for two months now as part of the disciplinary regime within the jail.
Wheble was appearing for sentence on charges of robbing a person he encountered at a fast food outlet of $50, and robbing a 68-year-old man of a backpack, headlamp, after-shave, cigarettes, and a screwdriver, all worth $83. He admitted those charges, as well as the assault on the prison officer.
Defence counsel Bridget Ayrey said Wheble had “a complex background and set of needs”.
“Obviously, his addiction to synthetic cannabis has brought about this offending, and probably the offending for which he has already served sentences,” she said. Wheble was not long out of prison when the robberies occurred in July.
Miss Ayrey said he had begun heavy drug use from age 12 or 13, and from that time had been placed into Child, Youth, and Family care. He had spent time in Auckland boys’ homes and then back in Christchurch. His life had been unsettled for a few years.
This had all led to repeated prison terms “mainly because these addictions are deep-set and long-standing”.
Judge David Saunders said Wheble wanted to attend drug rehabilitation at the Odyssey House residential course but it was unlikely he could be trusted to remain there. It was more realistic for him to attend a drug treatment programme in prison even if that meant he needed to be transferred to a prison such as Rimutaka in the North Island where the programme could handle prisoners with a high security classification.
He jailed Wheble for two years with special release conditions to attend a psychological assessment, drug and alcohol assessment, and treatment as directed. That may include a residential programme.
He also ordered Wheble to pay $133 for his robbery victims’ losses.
Category: News
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