A BALLARAT drug trafficker who donned a face mask and sawn-off shotgun during a terrifying armed robbery on the Black Hill Post Office will spend less than two years behind bars.
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Brett Patrick Cummins, 43, of Mount Pleasant, pointed the gun in the face of postmaster Troy Cheeseman on the afternoon of February 26, 2013, robbing the business of almost $4000 cash and cigarettes while a frightened toddler watched on.
Cummins, who pleaded guilty to the armed robbery and the trafficking of huge amounts of heroin around Ballarat, was on Thursday sentenced to a total of three years' and three months' jail by County Court Judge David Parsons.
But Cummins will spend less than two years behind bars, with the 495 days he has already served on remand counted as part of his sentence.
Handing down the sentence, Judge Parsons said the victims, including a young child, would suffer for the rest of their lives after an ordeal which would have been "terrifying".
The judge said Cummins also trafficked more than 269 grams of heroin between March and May, 2013, often travelling to the Western Suburbs of Melbourne twice a day to pick up heroin, while dozens of users waited at his Ballarat home.
The court heard Cummins also trafficked methamphetamine and cannabis around Ballarat and was a rampant drug user himself.
Judge Parsons said Cummins and his co-accused, Ian Gilbie, stole a car on the morning of the post office armed robbery, with Gilbie driving while Cummins robbed the business.
He said the pair were with another man shortly after the armed robbery, with all three using heroin together before throwing away the face mask Cummins had used.
A jury found Gilbie guilty at trial and he received a sentence of 15 months' jail and a five-year community corrections order.
The court heard Cummins' story came unstuck after police placed a listening device in his home and monitored his phone calls.
Judge Parsons said police heard Cummins make several admissions about the armed robbery, on one occasion bragging about a story in The Courier referring to the armed robbery.
Judge Parsons also placed Cummins on a five-year community corrections order, including an order he complete 500-hours of community work.
The judge said if not for Cummins guilty plea, he would have sentenced Cummins to eight years' jail with a non-parole period of 5.5 years.