A MAN with a long rap sheet has been jailed after pulling out a knife on a Robinvale bottle shop attendant and saying “this is going to be a life and death situation”.
Peter Johnson, 39, plead guilty in the Mildura County Court to one charge of attempted armed robbery.
Johnson walked into the Ritchies IGA bottle shop about 7pm on Decemebr 4, 2023, picked up a six pack of beer and put in the sales counter.
While the shop worker was processing the purchase, Johnson pulled a Stanley knife out of a bag and extended the blade.
He put the knife on the counter and demanded the money out of the till.
The court heard that as she was trying to open the till drawer, Johnson said “You’d better hurry up because this is going to be a life and death situation”.
“She told you she needed to get a card to open the till. She left the counter and walked to the drive-through area where she told another worker you had a knife,” Judge Michael Cahill said.
Johnson fled with the knife when a security guard walked into the bottle shop.
“The store worker knew you as a local. You had gone to the same school years before,” Judge Cahill said.
Judge Cahill said it was a serious offence, with the maximum penalty for attempted armed robbery being 20 years imprisonment.
“Crimes of the type are invariably a terrifying experience for the victim and threaten the community’s sense of safety,” he said.
“The victim of your crime told police she was petrified and your agitation was building by the second. She said she felt trapped behind the counter.”
Judge Cahill acknowledged the crime and his level of aggression were “relatively low”.
“You did not point the knife at your victim,” he said. “You left the store as soon as the security officer arrived.
“Your offending also was not sophisticated. You did not wear any disguise; your victim knew you.”
Johnson was a talented footballer and, in 2003, was drafted by the Western Jets.
He played with the side for a year before he was introduced to methamphetamine and became addicted.
Since the end of December last year, Johnson had spent extended periods in a management unit at Port Phillip prison where he was subject to 22-and 23-hour lockdowns.
“You had a short stint in a mainstream unit which ended when other prisoners stabbed you with a bike spoke,” Judge Cahill said.
Judge Cahill accepted that Johnson was remorseful.
“In April 2023, you were released from prison without supervision,” he said. “You struggled in the community and soon reoffended.
“You are in danger of institutionalisation.”
Johnson was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment with an 18-month community correction order, to begin on release from prison.
He has already served 325 days of the sentence in re-sentence detention.
