FORMER AFL player Chris Yarran has been jailed for five years for a meth-fuelled crime spree across Perth, which included assaulting a policeman and trying to steal his gun.
Yarran, 28, has been in prison since he was arrested for the November rampage, which started on Perth’s suburban fringe and ended in the city when he was tasered.
Opportunity lost: how Chris Yarran’s dream slipped away
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READ NOWHe pleaded guilty to offences including dangerous driving, aggravated robbery and criminal damage.
His lawyer Terry Dobson told the West Australian District Court on Thursday that his client started taking methylamphetamine when he moved to Melbourne and played for Carlton.
Yarran’s use spiralled out of control in 2017 when his niece died, then his cousin Shane Yarran – also a former AFL player with meth use problems – took his own life.
“From that point on, his use of meth skyrocketed and he saw no point in life,” Mr Dobson said.
“He simply did not see anything in terms of his future.”
Mr Dobson said Yarran sought to end his life when he committed the crimes and while meth use was no excuse, it was “an explanation for deranged behaviour”.
“He was mentally unwell but one would expect that … with chronic meth use,” the lawyer said.
Judge Linda Petrusa said Yarran’s crime spree had left “a trail of devastation”.
It included assaults on five people, the theft of two cars, the attempted theft of two more cars, a multi-vehicle crash and had a big psychological impact on his first victim, a 63-year-old neighbour to his grandparents.
“You hurt yourself and you hurt others,” she said.
“Unlike your victims, you had a choice.”
Yarran played 119 games for Carlton before he was traded to Richmond ahead of the 2016 season, but was delisted and never played a game for the Tigers.
He will be eligible for parole after serving three years, backdated to his arrest.
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