By Violet Li
A Hampton Park gambling addict has been jailed for growing a commercial quantity of cannabis and theft of electricity.
Van Vu, 49, was sentenced at the County Court of Victoria to two years and six months on 2 December for cultivating a hydroponic crop of 164 cannabis plants and stealing $13,000 of electricity using a bypass.
He was arrested on 7 September 2023, a day after police confirmed the irregular electricity usage at his address in Hampton Park. He was seen wearing outfits relevant to cultivation when arrested.
Police later discovered the plants at various stages of maturity inside the house.
In sentencing, Judge Pradeep Tiwana noted that Vu engaged in “substantial investment in equipment that enabled cultivation to occur”.
Vu admitted that he attended Bunnings to purchase the “plant ties” for the cultivation and the cultivation was for financial gain.
The court did not hear any evidence of him, or of the cultivation being connected to a broader crime network.
In regard to the charge of theft of electricity, Judge Tiwana found that the electricity bypass was operational for about 76 days and showed a “high degree of sophistication”.
Vu admitted in court that he sought to pay off his gambling and associated debts by cultivating cannabis plants.
He first engaged in gambling after the breakdown of his marriage.
He was previously convicted of cultivating prohibited plants in a commercial quantity in 2008 in New South Wales. The previous offending was also an attempt to work off gambling debts.
A witness expert diagnosed Vu with a gambling disorder.
“The underlying tenor of your counsel’s submission is that your inability to adequately deal with psychological stress led to the development of your gambling disorder, which in turn precipitated your offending behaviour,” Judge Tiwana said.
The judge also considered other mitigating factors, including Vu’s early guilty plea, the “greater burden of imprisonment knowing that he was unable to care for his son”, and the positive prospects of rehabilitation.
Vu’s son moved to Australia in early 2023 after his grandparents in Vietnam were no longer able to appropriately care for him. Since Vu’s arrest, his son has been in the care of a friend.
Vu stated that his son was adjusting well to living in Australia but was also experiencing a number of challenges, including learning and concentration difficulties, atypical behaviour, and sleepwalking and sleeptalking.
“I accept that your son’s living arrangements will make your time in custody more burdensome on you,” Judge Tiwana said.
“He plainly needs your support but thankfully he is living with a friend of yours who is supporting him as well as her own children.”
Vu’s jaile term includes a non-parole period of 19 months.
He had already served 452 days of pre-sentence detention.
