A Ballarat East man may get a prison sentence after selling a stolen antique diamond bracelet to a Melbourne second hand jeweller.
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Larry Lambert appeared at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Tuesday to plead guilty to the handling of stolen goods and weapon possession charges.
The man represented himself in the plea proceedings.
The court heard between the morning of August 15 and the afternoon of August 16, 2022, a burglary occurred at a Eureka Street address, with the offenders forcing entry through a locked window at the side of the house.
Once inside the house was ransacked, with the offenders taking two jewellery boxes.
Among the items contained in the boxes were a $10,000 pearl necklace, a $4000 diamond and emerald ring from the 1920s, a $10,000 diamond bracelet from the 1860s, and a $300 Gucci watch.
Other items, such as an Apple laptop and a bike frame, were also taken from the property.
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On September 18, 2022, the victim of the burglary found the stolen diamond bracelet for sale on the website Etsy.
The bracelet was listed for $11,650 at St Petersburg Estate Jewellery in Melbourne.
Ballarat police contacted the seller, who said the item was purchased off of a man named "Larry" for $1500.
Lambert was then found to have visited the store for the sale on September 2, 2022. Police searched a Golden Point address on January 4, 2023, in relation to the sale, and located prohibited weapons including knuckle dusters and a pocket knife.
None of the outstanding jewellery was found at the address.
Lambert was arrested outside of the address soon after and taken in, where he refused to tell police how he got his hands on the stolen bracelet.
He also pleaded guilty to driving whilst unlicenced, after being caught by police driving on the Midland Highway in May 2022.
He was found to have only held a probationary licence, which had expired in 1994.
As Lambert was unrepresented in court, Magistrate Ronald Saines allowed the matter to be adjourned for sentencing.
"It appears to me that, especially for the jewellery offence, we must consider the question of you being imprisoned," Mr Saines said.
Lambert will reappear in court on June 15.
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