Guns and ice found in bus

The court heard that on April 29 last year police searched the bus Mr Evans had been living in for about six months at Victoria Lake Holiday Park in Shepparton.

They found a 12-gauge single barrel shotgun and a .22 calibre single shot rifle wrapped in a towel under the bed.

They also found an M&M’s container that, instead of being filed with chocolate, was filled with methamphetamines in zip-lock bags.

A total of 103g of methamphetamines was in the container — including 40 individual zip-lock bags of small amounts that combined contained a total of 70g of the drug.

Police also seized two vials of testosterone and two plastic bottles of the steroid oxandrolone.

The court heard Evans was interviewed by police on two different occasions — giving different versions of why the guns and drugs were in the bus.

In an interview when he was arrested, he blamed another person for selling the drugs and possessing the guns.

He also said he had been to Sydney the day before to “buy a motorbike” and had only returned home at 2.30am.

In Evans’ second interview — the day after he was arrested — he told police he became involved in selling methamphetamines a week before Christmas and had bought an ounce every week off a supplier for $5500 an ounce on credit before the relationship soured over Evans owing the other person money.

He then established a new contact in Sydney and collected three ounces of ice, which was exchanged for $13,000.

Evans told police he went to Sydney twice more, picking up five ounces each time.

He told police he “did not realise it was (drug) trafficking” and that he needed money after leaving his job to “fix up the bus” he was living in, as well as wanting the drugs for personal use.

Evans also said he got the firearms for “self-protection”, as an associate of his had been “stood over by another person in the local area for selling methamphetamines”.

Evans’ barrister Stacey Stanley told the court her client was only charged with a single day of trafficking, despite what he had said in his police interview.

She also said no allegations were made that the firearms were loaded, or that there was any ammunition.

Ms Stanley also noted there was “no evidence he looked to on-sell the firearms”.

She also said the steroids were for personal use.

However, Ms Stanley did note Evans had a prior conviction for possessing a precursor intended to be used in the manufacturing of a drug in NSW in 2009 and possessing and manufacturing a prohibited drug in 2013.

In 2009 he was also sentenced to two years in prison for a kidnapping that involved a shortened firearm.

Ms Stanley told the court about Evans’ “extremely difficult upbringing” that included him being subjected to “significant violence” and other abuse.

Prosecutor David O’Doherty told that court that Evans’ serious weapons prior conviction was a demonstration that the guns that were found were “not collector’s items”.

“He obtained them for use,” he said.

“Possession of firearms and drug trafficking is a lethal combination.”

Evans will be sentenced later in May.