Mareena Louise Duncan fronts Bundaberg Supreme Court over MDMA

A young Bundaberg businesswoman and mother has ended up in the Supreme Court after a raid revealed a significant stash in her bedroom.

A successful Bundaberg businesswoman, beautician and mother has been sentenced to two years’ jail but with immediate parole after police found a stash of MDMA in a safe that had been stored in her bedroom.

Bundaberg Supreme Court heard police executed a search warrant at Mareena Louise Duncan’s home on March 2, 2020 and she refused to give them the combination to her safe.

The safe was seized and found to contain 10.651g of MDMA (ecstasy) in 16.014g of substance.

It also contained $1390 cash, clip-seal bags, unused hypodermic needles and syringes, unused gel capsules, a container, gloves and digital scales.

Duncan later pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a dangerous drug in excess of 2g.

On April 28, 2020, Duncan was again found with some small vials of MDMA.

She was fined but no convictions were recorded for those smaller amounts in a separate hearing.

Justice Graeme Crow found the cash, gloves, needles and syringes were consistent with the defendant’s legitimate beauty business and deemed they were unlikely to have been linked to the drugs in the safe.

He pointed out the “good purpose” of keeping needles in a safe given the accused had a young child.

The court heard Duncan was a young, first-time offender, being 22 at the time of the search warrant and her offending the following month was consistent with her drug issues at the time.

She was running her own beauty business in Bundaberg and a contributing member of society, having recently employed a part-time staff member.

Justice Crow noted Duncan had been drug-free for six months and had a mental health treatment plan to tackle her depression and anxiety.

References were tendered on behalf of Duncan’s parents, who also supported her in court, along with the businesswoman from whom she rented her space.

Duncan has recorded ABNs for Celebration Creations by Reena, Nails by Reena Bundaberg and the Beauty Room Qld.

She was praised by Justice Crow for turning a corner and taking care of her child while working hard in her business, but also warned against sliding back into bad habits.

“If you stay away from drugs, it’s plain to me you’ll have a successful and happy life raising your daughter … as a free person,” Justice Crow said.

“It is also plain to me, that if you return to drug use, there is a high likelihood you’ll see yourself in prison and you’ll see your daughter being raised by others. So you, as a young mother, will have to make a choice as time goes forward as to whether you wish to be a free person raising your daughter or whether you wish to be a young person who takes drugs.

“You will not have both – it’s a matter for you.”