Rugby league great Garry Sullivan refused bail over Melbourne's 1994 Chadstone shopping centre armed robbery cold case

By WAYNE FLOWER, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 04:54, 22 July 2026 | Updated: 04:55, 22 July 2026 A rugby league great who became a notorious armed robber has been thrown back in jail after three decades in hiding over an alleged shopping centre heist 32 years ago. Garry Sullivan, 78, allegedly confronted two Armaguard employees collecting weekend takings from a cinema at Melbourne's Chadstone shopping mall in 1994. Three men were wounded in the heist, which netted about $80,000, and was allegedly carried out while Sullivan was on the run after breaking out of prison. Melbourne Magistrates' Court heard on Wednesday how he allegedly shot one guard through the ankle when he moved, with the bullet then striking the second guard.  Sullivan then shot a bystander and shattered his femur for trying to take down the number plate of the getaway vehicle, prosecutor Francesca Holmes told the court. Sullivan played seven Tests for Australia, represented New South Wales and featured in Australia's victorious 1970 World Cup campaign before lining up in the 1972 World Cup final against Great Britain.  But between 1985 and 1991, Sullivan and his stepfather Bill Orchard carried out a string of armed hold-ups across Queensland, targeting banks and armoured cash vehicles. By the time police finally caught up with them, the pair had stolen more than $3million.  Police arrested Sullivan (pictured right) on the Gold Coast in May after reopening a cold case relating to a 1994 armed robbery in Melbourne In 1991, Sullivan was convicted of multiple armed robbery offences and sentenced to 20 years in prison. He served just two years before escaping from Borallon Correctional Centre in 1993, spending more than 30 years in hiding, including two decades on the Gold Coast. It was during his time on the run police allege he carried out the Chadstone heist.  Sullivan faced court on Wednesday to apply for bail, seeking release from Melbourne's Metropolitan Remand Centre to live with his family in Queensland.  But his bid was denied on the grounds that his previous criminal history showed he was an unacceptable risk of absconding. Ms Holmes described the prosecution case as 'extraordinarily strong'. Key evidence includes DNA on discarded gloves with likelihood ratios 'over a billion to one,' plus extensive listening device intercepts and phone recordings containing multiple incriminating comments, the court was told. The court heard Sullivan told a covert officer he knew the game was up over the Chadstone armed robbery. Garry Sullivan is pictured in a mug shot. The former rugby league star has been charged with allegedly shooting three men in a 1994 armed robbery 'I'm just going to sit here and wait for them,' Sullivan allegedly said. 'I better take the medicine ... can't go running and hide all that, can I?' 'Them' was the police, it was alleged, and the 'medicine' was a long stretch behind bars. But while Sullivan claimed he was ready to face the music, detectives allege the one-time Newtown Jets star and prison escapee had been living large on the proceeds of crime for decades - blowing hundreds of thousands at the TAB.  The court heard nearly $366,000 poured into a TAB corporate account over the years, with more than $218,000 withdrawn. Police alleged the net $150,000 difference was unexplained wealth, which they believe came from a string of violent armed robberies, including the Chadstone heist.  Ms Holmes alleged Sullivan had used the TAB to launder the proceeds and likely still had access to a significant sum of unrecovered cash.  While only $2,000 in cash was found at his home, Ms Holmes suggested his wealth had been dispersed after he learned police were moving in on him.  On Wednesday a Melbourne court heard that the former Newtown star (pictured during his playing days) has coronary artery disease, mouth cancer and coeliac disease The Armaguard van allegedly robbed by Sullivan while on the run   '[We say] that there's wealth that's being not distributed, but passed out for safekeeping, in case this major catastrophe comes true, which is that the police arrive ...and they do,' Ms Holmes said.  She described Sullivan's escape from jail as 'brazen' and reminded the court about how cop killer Dezi Freeman fled from the law.  'One only needs to look at Dezi Freeman, who didn't go far from his original place of offending, your honour, to see that it's not that hard for somebody to abscond and if one has the means to do so, and enough is at stake,' she said.  Sullivan's barrister Matthew Kramer said it was 'fanciful' to suggest his client would make a break for it.  He told the court Sullivan suffered from a multitude of medical conditions, including coronary artery disease, mouth cancer and coeliac disease.  'We're not Dezi Freeman. We're a 78-year-old man, with a myriad of health concerns. It's not even similar,' he argued.  Sullivan is charged with a number of offences, including armed robbery, two counts of intentionally causing injury and carrying a pistol without a certificate.  He will remain behind bars until he appeals the decision or returns to court in October.  Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.