Liam James Stanger, 38, pleaded guilty in Shepparton Magistrates' Court on Friday to robbery, committing an indictable offence while on bail, breaching a conduct condition of bail and driving while suspended.
Stanger walked into Amcal Pharmacy in Hare St at 8.55am on August 20 before approaching the medication counter and demanding drugs.
Detective Senior Constable Stuart Poulton of Echuca Criminal Investigation Unit said Stanger stole assorted quantities of methadone, OxyContin and about 16 boxes of Codeine tablets, valued at about $560.
‘‘He made threats that if staff did what he asked, then no-one would get hurt,’’ he said.
‘‘There was no weapon produced.’’
Det Snr Const Poulton said CCTV footage from a local business was critical in helping police identify Stanger, who was arrested about noon the next day.
Stanger was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment, with a six-month non-parole period.
He is no stranger to prison, having been jailed for seven months in August last year for robbing a Wodonga chemist while withdrawing from medication.
Fairfax reported Stanger needed to visit Wodonga, four hours from his then home in Cooma, NSW, to get his methadone prescription after being told it was not available in Corryong.
But his script was not there as expected on May 19, so Stanger dressed in a hoodie to hide his face and went inside the Wodonga Soul Pattinson Chemist.
Stanger then filled his backpack with more than $600 worth of drugs.
He was also arrested and charged with lighting a bushfire at Koetong near Albury in February this year after a lengthy police investigation.
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