James Carsten Christensen busted with meth at Quest apartments

A miner who was wanted by police when they happened to spot him while responding to another job didn’t have time to come up with a good excuse for what they found next.

meth generic istock

A former underground miner busted red-handed with a large quantity of methamphetamines told police waiting for him at his apartment that he found it outside the elevator.

The contract worker with experience in carpentry and tiling had 5.56g of pure meth in 7.339 grams of substance.

He also had dropped his wallet which revealed another clip-seal bag containing 0.351 grams of meth.

These details were read out in Rockhampton Supreme Court on April 29.

It heard James Carsten Christensen, 39, was wanted on a warrant for failing to appear in Rockhampton Magistrates Court and was subject to a 12-month probation order for non-drug offending when police attended the Quest Apartments complex on Victoria Parade, Rockhampton, on January 20, 2024, for another matter and saw him.

Justice Graeme Crow said after confirming Christensen’s identity with staff and getting the number of his room, police attended his apartment finding drug related items, including less than a gram of marijuana, empty clip-seal bags, scales and glass pipes – but not Christensen.

He said Christensen returned to his apartment seven minutes later to be greeted by police and he tried to conceal the bag of drugs in his left hand while also dropping his wallet on the ground.

“(He) told police he’d only just located the clip-seal bag on the floor downstairs near the elevator,” Justice Crow said.

“That plainly was a lie.”

Christensen was remanded in custody for 159 days before being granted bail.

Defence barrister Jordan Ahlstrand said his client had not committed any further offences in the 11 months he had been on bail waiting for this to be finalised.

“This is a man who came to drugs foolishly later in life, after the collapse of his first marriage, from which there were three children,” he said.

The court heard Christensen had worked seven years in carpentry and tiling, then five in underground mining and eight years installing kitchens before contract work that matched his background.

He started using drugs when he was 33.

Christensen pleaded guilty to one count each of possessing more than two grams of a schedule one drug, possessing a dangerous drug and possessing drug utensils.

He was sentenced to two years’ prison with 159 days presentence custody declared as time served and allowed immediate release on parole.

Originally published as James Carsten Christensen busted with meth at Quest apartments