A man has admitted to setting up an electronic telephone network to harass random people and inundate Victoria Police stations with more than 10,000 calls.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Dean Stewart Poot, 30, appeared in the County Court on Wednesday where he pleaded guilty to several charges, including using a carriage service to menace and obtaining property by deception.
The court heard between June 16, 2018, and October 15, 2018, Poot set up a device - a Gigabyte Brix - with telephony software so he could conduct automated virtual telephone calls.
Between October 16 and October 18, Poot conducted a coordinated attack on Victoria Police's phone system.
Poot used the pre-programmed Gigabyte Brix software to call random numbers.
If the recipients of the calls answered, they heard abusive messages before the call was diverted to a police station.
Portions of the recorded calls were played to the County Court on Wednesday.
The automated abusive messages included lines like, "I'll drive a pencil into your f****** ear" and "talk to me you f****** sl**."
The court heard 10,984 calls were diverted to Victoria Police stations across the state. The St Kilda Police Station alone received 262 calls in two hours.
The prosecution said the telephony attack prevented officers from making or receiving legitimate calls, which significantly disrupted police operations.
Police seized the Gigabyte Brix device on October 21. There was Poot's DNA found on the device and on one of the connecting sim cards.
An analysis of the Gigabyte Brix also showed it had been connected to Poot's Wi-Fi system in Bendigo.
The prosecution said the "sophisticated and pre-planned" offending appeared to be motivated by Poot's antisocial sentiment.
Tara Cosoleto
Journalist covering courts and general news at the Bendigo Advertiser.
Journalist covering courts and general news at the Bendigo Advertiser.
