Two jailed over six-hour armed siege that shut down Brisbane suburb
Two men at the centre of a drug-fuelled six-hour siege that brought inner Brisbane streets to a standstill have been sentenced to jail in Brisbane District Court.
Ross John Dolan, 31, and Christopher John Matthews, 35, went on a month-long crime-spree after meeting in prison.
They broke into houses and businesses, stealing weapons, vehicles, sunglasses and number plates.
Police caught up with the two men – who were both on parole – at an apartment block in Auchenflower, Brisbane about 10.30am on December 3, 2018.
But when officers from the special emergency response team went into the unit where the pair were holed up, Dolan and Matthews each fired a shot in the direction of the front door.
The area was shut down with bus services suspended, traffic on the Brisbane River, including ferries, halted and some people prevented from leaving or travelling to Wesley Hospital, which is near the unit complex.
The pair surrendered peacefully about 4.30pm.
Both men pleaded guilty to a string of charges in the Brisbane District Court on Monday.
In a “bizarre” incident Dolan claimed he acted in revenge when he broke into an optometrist the day after his release from prison, crown prosecutor Elizabeth Kelso told the court.
Dolan told police he stole sunglasses from the business because he was earlier identified as the perpetrator of another break-in at the same property, but wasn’t responsible for that offence.
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Judge Paul Smith handed Dolan a head sentence for seven years in jail, while Matthews was jailed for six-and-a-half years.
Both men will be eligible for parole in March 2023.
-AAP
