Jail term increased for Vic artist killer

A Melbourne man who killed a graphic designer friend and kept his body stuffed in a wheelie bin for 17 years has had his prison sentence increased.

John Spencer White admitted the 2001 manslaughter of John Christianos, whose remains were discovered at an Oakleigh South storage facility in 2018 when White stopped paying storage fees.

Prosecutors appealed the six-and-a-half-year jail sentence he was handed last year, arguing White had taken the law into his own hands, shooting the victim twice, after the pair argued.

Victoria's Court of Appeal on Wednesday increased White's sentence to nine years.

Mr Christianos had worked for White as a graphic artist, designing posters to be sold in the killer's Malvern East shop. He bought Mr Christianos a caravan to live in.

He painted portraits of Sir Donald Bradman and AFL star Gary Ablett Senior to turn into posters.

But Mr Christianos would drink, become aggressive and abusive, and the relationship became strained.

White claimed he fired the fatal shots after Mr Christianos threatened him with a knife.

He panicked. White stuffed Mr Christianos' body into a wheelie bin, filled it with bark and soil, and took it to the storage facility he leased to store memorabilia and sporting paraphernalia.

He told Mr Christianos' friends the missing man had been suicidal, giving them hope he'd one day turn up.

Workers discovered the body after White stopped paying fees on the locker.

The trio of justices who re-sentenced White said a substantially higher sentence was required because of White's deceptions after the killing.

It had left family in a distressing position.

White will now be eligible for parole after serving at least six years. He had initially been ordered to serve a minimum of three-and-a-half years.