Bevan Tipper, 25, of Shepparton, pleaded guilty in Shepparton Magistrates’ Court to more than 50 charges, including dangerous driving while being pursued by police, vehicle theft, theft, possessing the prescription drug Largactil, attempted theft, three counts of unlicensed driving and committing a schedule two offence on bail.
The court heard Tipper stole a Mitsubishi Lancer from Shepparton Railway Station at about 6.40am on February 23 while it was still running with keys in the ignition.
Police then saw Tipper in the Mitsubishi on Raftery Rd, Kialla, at about 12.10pm when he tried to duck down while driving past an unmarked police car.
Tipper then drove on the wrong side of the road at about 110km/h to 120km/h on Raftery Rd, and 130km/h on the Goulburn Valley Hwy, and didn’t pull over when police flashed their lights on both 100km/h speed limit roads.
He then stole a jerry can from a Gowangardie property at about 5.45pm.
Police found the prescription drug Largactil on Tipper when they arrested him the next day.
Tipper also pleaded guilty to driving dangerously while being pursued by police, driving while disqualified and using an unregistered vehicle.
The court heard he drove a Daewoo sedan, without number plates, erratically on the wrong side of the Goulburn Valley Hwy, Kialla on May 21, 2024, and didn’t stop when police flashed their lights.
Tipper also pleaded guilty to three other counts of vehicle theft after stealing a Holden, Toyota and Mazda in Shepparton in February, September and December 2024, respectively.
He also pleaded guilty to two counts of unlicensed driving after stealing the Mazda and Holden, which were unlocked with keys inside.
He then went to the Shepparton Police Station in the Holden to sign in on bail with a stolen roast chicken in the car.
Tipper also pleaded guilty to assaulting an emergency worker and behaving offensively in public.
The court heard Tipper spat at an off-duty police officer’s car while stopped at the Balaclava Rd and Wyndham St intersection traffic lights in Shepparton on May 16, 2024, and stuck up his middle finger when the car he was in drove away.
Tipper also pleaded guilty to damaging property and two counts of resisting an emergency worker on duty after smashing the windscreens of two unmarked police vehicles with a shovel outside the Shepparton Police Station on May 22, 2024.
He also pleaded guilty to damaging property after using a box cutter to puncture a Kia Sportage’s tyre in a Shepparton hotel car park on August 28, 2024.
Tipper also pleaded guilty to possessing a weapon, two counts of possessing methamphetamines, possessing GHB, possessing cannabis and two counts of committing an indictable offence on bail.
Police found him with a pocketknife, methamphetamines and GHB on Swallow St on May 11, and methamphetamines and cannabis on Maude St on August 24, in Shepparton in 2023.
Tipper also pleaded guilty to six counts of committing an indictable offence while on bail, and three counts of failing to answer bail.
Tipper’s defence solicitor Emma King said her client’s offending was “not sophisticated”, and acknowledged he would be sentenced to prison time, which would be a “big punishment” for him.
She said now was a chance for him “clean up, dry out and reflect”.
Ms King also said Tipper had a significant history of trauma in his youth, which was “a lot to unpack”.
Magistrate Simon Zebrowski said Tipper’s offending was of “high volume”, and noted he hadn’t taken opportunities to engage with support services in the past.
“You have a self-sabotage button you press whenever you get the chance,” he said.
Tipper was sentenced to 12 months in prison with a non-parole period of six months.
The 42 days he spent in pre-sentence detention will count as time already served.
He was also fined $100 for all the charges of driving while unlicensed, and was disqualified from driving for 24 months.
