Fraser Coast council CEO Ken Diehm dragged into dogfight

The CEO of a Queensland council has been called a hypocrite after he slammed a dog owner whose pets escaped after it was revealed his family’s unregistered dog also fled its home.

Fraser Coast Regional Council CEO Ken Diehm is facing pressure over an escaped dog.

An inside source has accused Fraser Coast council chief executive of being a hypocrite for comments he made surrounding a TikTok user whose video about his dogfight with the organisation went viral.

The TikTok user, who asked not to be named, spoke to the Chronicle last week after videos on his account The Angry Mechanic about the issue garnered hundreds of thousands of views.

He said the situation began when his dogs repeatedly escaped his Hervey Bay home.

After setting up cameras to investigate, he realised the dogs had figured out they could push on the electric gate to trigger a safety mechanism that would open the gates.

A Hervey Bay man's stoush with the Fraser Coast Regional Council has gone viral.

Fraser Coast Regional Council issued a fine and he discussed it with compliance officers, he said.

Two and a half months later, after he secured the fence, another fine arrived, this time for $718.

He said it was because the dogs could still “protrude” from the fence and that council demanded he added another two feet to the height of the fence.

In response, Mr Diehm said that it was ridiculous to suggest that the council issued a fine because a dog could see through the fence.

Fraser Coast Regional Council CEO Ken Diehm and his wife Tania, whose dog escaped and was unregistered.

“The fine was issued for not complying with a notice to stop the dog from jumping the fence,” he said.

“There have been a number of serious dog attacks in our local government area, including a death and other attacks which have resulted in permanent disfigurement.

“I couldn’t care if they put a window in their fence – as long as the dog is contained so it cannot escape and attack someone.”

But this week a source from inside council contacted the Chronicle and said Mr Diehm had himself been caught with a wandering dog in 2018 and the animal was also unregistered.

A response from council said the dog had belonged to Mr Diehm’s wife, Tania.

“The CEO’s wife’s Shih tzu was picked up wandering and impounded in 2018,” a council spokesman said.

“As the dog was microchipped and registered for life in Western Australia, the CEO’s wife thought that registration carried over to Queensland.

“As per standard operating procedures of the time, the animal was taken to the pound and scanned for a microchip and that data used to identify the owner.

FCRC CEO Ken Diehm is in the middle of a dog fight over escaped dogs.

“The CEO was notified, and he referred officers to his wife and specifically requested that his wife receive no special treatment.

“As per standard operating procedures, no fine is issued to owners on their first offence and the dog was released to the CEO’s wife once the registration was paid.

“Subsequently, a complaint was made to council regarding the matter.

“The matter was referred to the Crime and Corruption Commission and an investigation was undertaken by an independent legal firm.

“The investigation found the complaint was unsubstantiated.

“The CEO was not involved in the investigation.”

In the case of the Angry Mechanic, he has vowed not to back down on the issue, vowing he was willing to take the council to court over the fines.