Western Downs court wrap: Some of the most shocking crimes heard in 2024

From violent assaults to drug offenders, 2024 was a busy year for our courts. These are some of the most shocking cases heard across the Western Downs in 2024.

There have been a number of shocking and concerning stories that came from our courts in 2024.

From violent assaults and drug offences there are some of the offenders sentenced in courts across the Western Downs.

CONVICTION RECORDED

‘Little f--kng b---h’: Phone call records moment man choked ex

A Dalby woman has been left living in fear, with a last-minute change of plea possibly the only thing saving her attacker from spending time behind bars.

Kenny Junior Quaresma faced Dalby District Court in November pleading guilty to strangulation in a domestic setting after an incident on June 8, 2022.

Initially scheduled for a trial, the jury was dismissed after a last minute guilty plea by the 33-year-old.

The court was told on the day of the offending Quaresma had rocked up uninvited at his former partner’s Dalby home with his two young children running to the door to greet him.

Quaresma then asked his young daughter if she wanted to go with him and without asking her mother picked up the child and began walking out the back door, an action which Judge Benedict Power KC said would’ve been “terrifying” for the mother.

The mother then reportedly screamed at Quaresma to put down their child and managed to wrestle her daughter from his arms before calling the police.

The court was told Quaresma then flew into a rage calling his ex partner a “little f--kng b---h” and strangling her for several seconds, with the sounds of choking being recorded by police on the other end of the phone.

In sentencing Judge Power praised Quaresma‘s decision to plead guilty, albeit at the last minute.

“Had you gone to trial and been found guilty it’s inevitable you would’ve gone to prison,” he said.

“By pleading guilty you made it so the mother of your two children did not have to give evidence and face cross examination.”

Quaresma was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months and ordered to pay $3000 in compensation to the victim. The protection order was extended until August 29, 2029.

The original story can be found here.

Man slashes his wife’s throat in violent rage

A court has been told a Western Downs man violently attacked his wife of 21 years, slashing her throat and spraying chilli infused water at his son during a prolonged assault.

In November Bradley David Smyth appeared in Dalby District Court from custody, where he has spent the past 364 days, and pleaded guilty to one count of assault and one count of wounding.

The court was told that on November 13, 2023 the 54-year-old was at his Weranga home which he shared with his partner and two adult children when a drunken argument occurred.

The court was told during the argument Smyth called his sons “ungrateful little s--ts” and told them he was going to sell the home.

Smyth’s son then reportedly left the property to grab his friend, who entered the house and attempted to calm Smyth down, however he grabbed a six pack of beer and left for the next few hours.

The prosecution told the court that later that day Smyth re-entered the property armed with a boning knife and filleting knife in one hand and a sauce bottle filled with a mixture of chilli and water in the other.

The court was told Smyth attempted to squirt the chilli mix onto his partner, with the liquid splashing onto his son’s friend’s, hand burning him.

The prosecution said the family initially believed it was acid in the bottle due to the burning sensation it left on the man’s hand.

The court was told Smyth’s partner then went outside to check on the man’s hand before returning inside where the violent attack continued.

As she walked past Smyth he shoved her causing her to fall onto a couch at which point he swung the two knives in a back hand motion slicing her throat and causing a 7cm laceration.

As she raised her hands to protect herself Smyth swung again in a downward motion stabbing a 2cm gash on her forearm.

Judge Benedict Power KC later told Smyth he was lucky the attack had not punctured any major arteries.

For the attack Smyth was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment with a parole release date set for December 20, 2024.

Man involved in Chinchilla siege caught supplying ice

A Chinchilla man pleaded guilty in Dalby District Court in July to two counts of supplying methamphetamine.

Dylan Peter Mackinlay faced court following the incidents on the April 12 and 13, 2023, where he supplied “half a point” (0.05g) of the drug on both days to the same person.

Mackinlay was on an 18-month probation at the time from an incident in September 2022 where he threatened police with a machete during an almost 24-hour siege at his Chinchilla property

Judge Horneman-Wren criticised Mackinlay for his decision to supply dangerous drugs to another person and said “someone supplied meth to you for the first time at one point and your life spiralled and now you’ve done the same with someone else”.

He also said while he “hadn’t supplied in the traditional sense but he had expressed a willingness to give someone the drugs”.

When sentencing Judge Horneman-Wren took into account Mackinlay’s early guilty plea as well as his decision to move away from Chinchilla and get clean. He was sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for 18 months.

The original story can be found here.

Big-time Western Downs meth trafficker jailed

A Dalby man who went from slinging bags of frozen ice at his parents’ business to dealing bags of crystal meth on the streets has been jailed for nine years.

The recidivist drug dealer, Jack Andrew Dukes, fronted Toowoomba Supreme Court in April, and pleaded guilty to trafficking and possessing methamphetamine.

The court heard in April 2023, the 29-year-old was intercepted at Dalby with 332g of meth hidden in the car he was driving, which had a street value of $90,000.

Police also found 459g of a pure version of the substance.

Earlier that day, Toowoomba police attempted to pull Dukes over at Withcott, however he fled up the range at speed forcing police to cancel the pursuit for the public’s safety.

When police searched Dukes’ phone, the court heard officers found evidence relating to 26 methamphetamine drug deals, of which 16 occurred, and one was for an ounce of the insidious drug.

The court was told Dukes grew up in a loving and stable home, and he had worked for his parents’ ice-making business since he could throw a bag of ice, however he later succumbed to addiction.

Justice Burns said since his arrest, Dukes was an upstanding prisoner who worked in a leadership role. Dukes was sentenced to a nine year jail term, and the 352 days he spent in pre-sentence custody was declared as time served. He will be eligible to apply for parole on April 22, 2025.

The original story can be found here.

‘Demon inside of him’: Woman’s nose bitten, broken in wild assault

A 65-year-old Dalby man savagely attacked a woman while visiting her Brisbane home then “snapped” her phone when she tried to call police.

These details were read out in Dalby Magistrates Court where Dale Wayne White pleaded guilty to assault and damage of property.

The court was told that on November 29, 2023 White was at the victim’s home in the Brisbane suburb of Manly West socialising and drinking when at around 10.30pm she went to bed.

She was woken an hour later by White banging and kicking her door demanding his phone back which he believed she had stolen.

White was also holding the victim’s phone and aggressively asking her to use it to call his.

When the victim opened the door to retrieve her phone the court was told White pushed her back onto the bed and delivering multiple closed fist punches to the nose and face.

The victim then allegedly kicked White in the stomach to get him off her which the court heard resulted in him becoming more enraged and biting the victim on the nose. In her report to the police the victim was quoted as saying “he looked like he had a demon inside of him”.

The victim then attempted to call the police at which point White snatched her phone and snapped it in half before leaving the premises.

White, who represented himself, told the magistrate “I accept full responsibility, I regret it and I accept my punishment” before being taken away by police.

He will serve five months in jail before being released on a 12-month suspended sentence.

The original story can be found here.

NO CONVICTION RECORDED

Man fronts court for second assault in less than a year

A 20-year-old Western Downs man, described as having “anger management issues”, has faced court for being in possession of stolen tyres after crashing a car, and assaulting the partner of a woman involved in a dispute with his girlfriend.

Kaide Michael James Hogan appeared in the Dalby Magistrates Court in October pleading guilty to common assault, destruction of property and receiving tainted goods. The court was told on June 15, 2024, police received a call from a witness who saw two men removing the wheels from a car in Roma about 10.30pm.

About an hour later police attended the scene of a crash, identifying Hogan as the driver and discovering the stolen tyres in the back of the four wheel drive.

Hogan initially told police he had purchased the tyres for his drag car, but it was later discovered they had been stolen by his passengers. Hogan is not believed to have been involved in the theft of the tyres but pleaded guilty to willingly accepting the tainted goods.

Meanwhile on September 5, about 7pm Hogan attended a Tara property with his mother and partner after an ongoing dispute between his partner and an unnamed female who resided at the property.

The court was told an argument then ensued at which point Hogan went to his car, grabbed a tyre iron and smashed the rear light of the woman’s car. He then grabbed the woman’s partner by the throat, threatening him and slamming him into a window at the property.

When sentencing Ms Payne took into account Hogan’s history including a case of common assault in 2023 and placed him on a 12 month probation as well as $200 in restoration for the damaged tail light. No conviction was recorded.

The original story can be found here.

‘This is how you end up like your shot friends’

A 53-year-old Tara man has faced court after a wild brawl in Foodworks that all started over a tub of butter.

Raymond Joseph Mason faced Dalby Magistrates Court, pleading not guilty to public nuisance and choosing to represent himself during the hearing.

During the opening statements police prosecutor Sergeant Chris Hutchins told the court that on September 23, 2023, about 5.30pm police were called to the Tara Foodworks after reports of a fight between two men.

When they arrived they found produce strewn across the ground, including glass from a Nescafe coffee jar that was broken during the fight.

Cameras inside the store captured Mason getting into an argument with another man and women before he began walking towards the exit while turning around and goading the man to follow him outside.

As Mason leaves he places a tub of butter on the counter top and begins to walk outside, at which point the teenager walks up, grabs the butter and begins walking back into the store to put it away.

Mason can then be seen sprinting across the store and striking the teenager as he turns around before a brawl ensues.

Senior Constable Stephens told the court he had attended Mason’s property about 6.50pm to issue him his notice to appear with Mason becoming agitated.

Mason, who throughout much of the trial brought up his mistreatment at the hands of the police, then asked for the body cam footage of Senior Constable Stephens to be shown.

In the footage Senior Constable Stephens and his partner can be seen approaching the gate of Mason’s property presenting him with his notice and asking about the fight.

Mason then told police he would “catch him (the teenager) out on the street” and said he had “10 cars of boys coming up from the missions to deal with him”.

Police could then be heard warning Mason not to make threats and to let it go.

Mason then made a comment to the Tara police saying “this is how you end up like your shot friends” with police warning Mason not to speak ill of the dead.

In sentencing magistrate Kathleen Payne agreed and told Mason that he had demonstrated “a despicable display of violence” and it was clear from the footage he had been trying to get the man to fight.

She also condemned the threats he made to police specifically referencing the tragic Wieambilla shootings.

Mason was found guilty, fined $800 and no conviction was recorded.

The original story can be found here.

‘Deplorable and terrifying’: Man scolded for drunken rampage

A Dalby man has fronted court for a drunken rampage, where a man was pulled from their car and beaten.

Michael John William Fairchild was refused alcohol at Dalby’s Country Club Hotel on the afternoon of June 25 due to his intoxication levels, Dalby Magistrates Court heard.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Chris Hutchins said the 43-year-old walked into the gaming room and began kicking over chairs, smashing glasses and pushing and threatening staff who were asking him to leave.

After staff ejected him from the pub, Fairchild’s rampage continued on the street.

The court heard Fairchild walked into the middle of the road on Drayton Street, waving his arms, swearing and blocking traffic. It was then alleged a driver beeped at Fairchild and told him to get off the road. Fairchild dragged them from the vehicle and assaulted them.

The driver did not press charges. The court heard he resisted arrest when police arrived, and officers also located a multitool pocket knife in his possession.

Fairchild pleaded guilty to public nuisance, failure to leave a premises, resisting arrest, not following police instructions and possession of a knife. Fairchild’s defence lawyer said her client had been struggling with alcohol and prescription medication addiction following the loss of his partner to a brain aneurysm earlier in the year.

Magistrate Kathleen Payne described Fairchild’s actions as “deplorable and terrifying” and handed him a 12-month probation order. No conviction was recorded.

The original story can be found here.