A Porepunkah man found himself back behind bars after breaching his bail conditions while awaiting sentence for family violence charges. The 19-year-old appeared at Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court via a prison link on Monday pleading guilty to breaching bail conditions and to drug possession. The court heard the man had been placed on a deferred sentence in June and when police conducted a check at his home a month later, he wasn’t there. Part of his conditions had been to reside at the Porepunkah property and a ban from visiting the Bright township. Defence counsel Geoff Clancy said his client had relapsed into drug use and fled to the city. His mother told police she “could not control him”. A warrant was issued for his arrest with police tracking him to a hotel room on Spencer Street, Melbourne. He was arrested after being found in possession of small amounts of methylamphetamine, heroine and cannabis. The accused was on a deferred sentence for serious family violence and has served 88 days during two separate stints behind bars. Magistrate Megan Casey ordered the man complete a community corrections order assessment, remanding him in custody to return to Wangaratta court on 14 September. “If you didn’t already, what you now appreciate is the path of getting off drug use is complicated,” she said.
