One of the robberies committed by Matthew Leigh Barry Whitney was at a Coles Express. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
A meth-affected serial robber managed to repeatedly drop his knife when fleeing the scenes of his crimes in 2023.
Matthew Leigh Barry Whitney, 38, pleaded guilty to three counts of robbery before he was sentenced by the ACT Supreme Court earlier this week.
Each of his three robberies, which occurred over three weeks in April 2023 while he was using methamphetamine, was caught on CCTV.
First up, he wore a bandanna and hoodie into the Shell Coles Express in Deakin and threatened the attendant, claiming he had a knife even though he didn’t. He took $260 from the till before fleeing.
Next, he went to the Friendly Grocer in Narrabundah, where he threatened the attendant, pushed her away as she tried to stop him from taking money from the till, and then snatched the till, escaping with about $200.
“As he was escaping, he fell over and dropped a knife, although the knife was not produced during the robbery itself,” Justice Verity McWilliam wrote in her sentencing remarks.
In the last robbery, he wore a balaclava and carried a steak knife into the Ampol Service Station in Braddon before demanding money from staff.
The staff member retreated to a safe room while Whitney pulled out the till and ran from the store, dropping his knife by the entrance before escaping in a vehicle.
He was arrested the next day and spent more than 17 months behind bars before facing court for his sentencing.
Justice McWilliam said each of the three victims was vulnerable at the time due to their employment.
The victim from the first robbery told the court his sense of personal security was affected, and he became more aware and cautious of people and installed a dashcam in his car.
The owner of the grocery store said the worker involved in the robbery had to take time off work. She noted that she has workers who are 15 and 16 years old, and their safety and willingness to work have been affected. Additionally, the robbery has impacted the community’s sense of safety, with people asking her questions.
“What these victim impact statements should say to the offender is that if he thinks he is only taking a little bit of cash and not hurting anybody, he is wrong,” Justice McWilliam said.
“He is harming vulnerable people, and that has a ripple effect for the community in which these businesses are located.”
She said Whitney had a disadvantaged childhood, had scarce support and noted how drug addiction had become a feature in his life from an early age.
She sentenced him to a total of four years’ jail, backdated to account for time served, with the remainder suspended from 13 October. He is to complete a two-and-a-half-year Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order, a community-based sentence focusing on drug rehabilitation.
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