An aspiring Adelaide Hills gunsmith has lost his lifelong weapons collection and has been banned from ever owning another firearm after escaping jail for possessing a large illegal haul in a secret room at his home.
Paul Victor Hofmann, 56, was today sentenced to three years and one month with a non-parole period of two years, but the term was suspended after he spent 13 months in jail.
District Court Judge Jo-Anne Deuter also banned the father-of-two from owning a gun in the future, and ordered the seized guns be forfeited to police.
Hofmann was registered to own 36 firearms – but SA Police found 260 guns when they raided his Brukunga property in August 2019 while investigating an unrelated matter.
Judge Deuter said parts of a sub-machine gun, along with rifles, dangerous handguns and Zulu spears, were found in his home.
She said police found many of the guns in a secret room hidden behind a bookcase, as well as in his roof space.
She said his firearms were at risk of being stolen, as some were untraceable.
"There is no doubt there is a market for unrecorded and essentially untraceable firearms to be used for a criminal purpose," she said.
"It is interesting that your property was looted after you were placed in custody."
Judge Deuter said Hofmann had intended to get a gun dealing licence and was aware of his obligations to keep firearms secured and stored correctly in a safe.
"Mr Hofmann when I asked your counsel why it was that being a registered gun owner, you had not taken the step of registering all the guns at your property? He answered, 'it was laziness'," she said.
"He told the court you had intended to sort things out and keep your collection of guns legal and secure so you could work as a gunsmith and as a gun dealer.
"However, he described how you got carried away and desensitised to the sheer volume of guns around you.
"That is really no excuse."
Judge Deuter said there was no evidence Hofmann planned to use the guns in a crime or trade them, and he had no criminal history.
