IT took less than 26 minutes for thieves to gain access to a secure storage facility, cut the locks to 20 safes and steal 39 guns.
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And the plot to pull off the biggest firearm heist in the Hunter's history began with Michael Thomas Rae.
It was about 2.30pm on December 5, 2016, the day of the massive gun theft, when Rae, now 33, went to Kennards, Newcastle and asked about renting some storage space.
He was walking down a flight of stairs to the secure firearm storage facility when the employee he was with stopped to punch his PIN into a keypad.
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As the employee talked about dimensions and prices, Rae was frantically memorising the man's unique code.
About three hours later, Benjamin Rae, Michael's older brother, walked into Kennards and asked to rent the smallest, cheapest locker available.
He provided a fake name, handed over $21 for a 1m x 1m space and was given a unique six digit PIN number allowing him 24/7 access into the facility.
Later that night, thieves would use the two codes to steal 39 guns from the secure firearm storage area, the largest gun heist in the Hunter's history.
Michael Rae pleaded not guilty to accessory before the fact to aggravated break and enter and commit serious indictable offence.
But following a three-day trial in Newcastle District Court in December, a jury found Rae guilty after deliberating for 45 minutes.
"Objectively this was a terribly serious crime," Judge Peter Berman said.
"There were 39 firearms stolen and it would be naive to think that none of them would be used for illegal purposes.
"Indeed the people who buy them are likely to be committing a criminal act by doing so. "So the class of people likely to come into possession of those firearms that remain in the community is likely to be such that illegal use of the firearms is highly likely."
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Judge Berman sentenced Michael Rae to a maximum of four-and-a-half years in jail, with a non-parole period of three years, the same sentence Benjamin Rae received when he was jailed in Newcastle District Court in August, 2018.
A third brother, Joshua Rae, pleaded guilty to receiving six firearm bolts stolen in the break-in. He also admitted to shooting a man in the face during a home invasion.
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