A 20-year-old man may have to hand over $12,000 to Victoria Police if he admits the cash, found scattered on his children's bedroom floor, was the proceeds of crime.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
On March 28, Ballarat police allegedly allegedly found cannabis, ecstasy and almost $12,000 cash in the house Brenton Ware lives with his partner and two children.
The cash was allegedly found in the children's bedroom spread around the floor in what police described as looking like an "obvious attempt to hide it under the rug".
A total of 160 grams of cannabis in snap lock bags and less than one gram of ecstasy was allegedly found in the bedroom and kitchen.
It is alleged a piece of paper with names and amounts owed was found.
Ware, who was on a community corrections order at the time of the alleged offending, admitted to police he possessed the cannabis but he denied trafficking the drug.
He was charged with eight offences, including trafficking, possessing and using cannabis, possessing ecstacy and dealing with proceeds of crime.
Ware sought a sentence indication at the online Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Thursday if he pleaded guilty to five charges and the remaining three were withdrawn.
Defence lawyer Manny Brennan said his client and his partner withdrew $12,000 from a bank account before Christmas in 2019.
He said the money came from Ware's partner's inheritance and the couple were going to buy a car with it. But when the purchase fell through, the couple kept the cash at their home.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Simon Pearce said the prosecution were not satisfied the cash was an inheritance and they were seeking to forfeit it.
IN OTHER NEWS:
Magistrate Ron Saines said he would only give a sentence indication if there was a guilty plea to the dealing with proceeds of crime charge.
He said trafficking cannabis was serious and Ware had a criminal history, which included dishonesty.
The magistrate said upon a guilty plea and taking into account Ware's age and his plan to maintain rehabilitation, a non-custodial sentence would be appropriate.
Mr Brennan then requested a short adjournment, given Ware would lose the $12,000 if he pleaded guilty and the police forfeiture application was granted.
Ware's bail was extended and his case was adjourned to next Friday.
If you are seeing this message you are a loyal digital subscriber to The Courier, as we made this story available only to subscribers. Thank you very much for your support and allowing us to continue telling Ballarat's story. We appreciate your support of journalism in our great city.