Drug dealer jailed for $700 debt killing

Updated January 09, 2012 18:28:50

A drug dealer has been sentenced to 12 years jail for fatally shooting a Perth man over a $700 debt.

The killer, who cannot be identified, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Mario Perrin, 39, at his Dianella home in October 2010.

The pair had been exchanging abusive texts and Mr Perrin had dared the man to show up at his house to collect the money he owed him for drugs.

Mr Perrin was shot in the head when the man fired a loaded gun three times.

In sentencing, the judge expressed concern about the increasing use of violence to enforce drug debts.

Supreme Court Justice Lindsay Jenkins said a message had to be sent to people who commit such crimes that they will be dealt with severely.

The man had stood trial for murder but midway through the case pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter.

At the time of the plea change, Mr Perrin's sister said the family had been broken by what had happened.

Semmima Saylor said the killer knew what he was doing.

"You walk into someone's house with a loaded firearm and you pull the trigger, surely you don't honestly think you're not going to do some serious injury or death," she said.

Outside court today, Mr Perrin's mother Maureen Saylor welcomed the sentence.

"It doesn't matter how long he gets, it's not going to bring our son back but we're happy with the sentence," she said.

"He comes out, he sees his children, his parents, we don't see our son."

Mrs Saylor said the case was made more difficult because the killer initially denied responsibility for the shooting.

"He put us through 13 months of us coming to court sitting there pleading not guilty then out of the blue he pleaded guilty; that was a shock to us," she said.

"I don't know how any person can sit there and say they are not guilty then all of a sudden they're guilty."

The killer will have to serve ten years before he can be released on parole.

Topics: courts-and-trials, murder-and-manslaughter, drug-offences, perth-6000

First posted January 09, 2012 15:04:20

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-01-09/drug-dealer-sentenced-over-fatal-shooting/3764270

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