Gun fired in Hervey Bay street after teenager’s nine-day ice bender

An ice-addicted teenager fired a gun down a Hervey Bay street after seeing his ex girlfriend with a new partner.

A teen had been on a nine-day ice bender before firing a gun down a suburban Hervey Bay street.

An ice-addicted teenager fired a gun down a Hervey Bay street after seeing his ex girlfriend with a new partner.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to one count of dangerous conduct with a weapon when he faced Maryborough District Court on Wednesday.

Crown prosecutor Farook Anoozer said the incident happened on January 1, 2023, when the teen fired a rifle while driving a car along Freshwater Street.

He had first pointed the rifle at the couple before shooting it down the street, he said.

The teen had served 170 days in pre-sentence custody.

His childhood had been “very unfortunate”, the court heard, and he had been exposed to drugs at a young age.

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He had started smoking marijuana at 12 and had later become addicted to ice.

In the lead-up to the events on New Year’s Day, he had been on a nine-day ice bender, the court heard.

Judge Ian Dearden said the teen’s actions had been a “terrifying thing to do”.

“You could have killed someone,” he said.

After the incident, the boy was found by police hiding in an upstairs room of a home, with the rifle wrapped in a shirt by the side of a couch.

The teen intended to move to the Sunshine Coast for a fresh start, the court heard.

He was sentenced to the 170 days he had already spent in custody and no conviction was recorded.