Man taken off ADHD drug turned to crystal meth

WHEN Bradley Allan Watts was cut off from a prescribed drug he had taken since age four, he turned to methylamphetamines to fill the void.

WHEN Bradley Allan Watts was cut off from a prescribed drug he had taken since age four, he turned to methylamphetamines to fill the void.

The Toowoomba welder was already under surveillance when police pulled him over on December 16, 2010, and found him with glassware and precursor chemicals to make the dangerous drug.

Tests showed the glassware still had traces of methylamphetamines, indicating he had already used them to cook the drug.

A chemist believed he had enough iodine, pseudoephedrine, hypofluorous acid and other chemicals to produce another 2.5g of methylamphetamines.

Watts, then aged 25, told police he had attempted to make the drug about eight times in the two months before he was caught.

When it worked he produced about 2g but he did not succeed every time.

Defence barrister Callan Cassidy told Brisbane Supreme Court his client was diagnosed with epilepsy and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder at age four and prescribed the drug Ritalin.

Ritalin (methylphenidate) is a central nervous system stimulant used to treat ADHD and is known to be addictive.

Mr Cassidy said Watts took the drug for 16 years until he was taken off at age 22.

He said Watts turned to methylamphetamines because it had a similar calming effect as the Ritalin.

Mr Cassidy said Watts was working as a welder and could support his habit but when he lost his job, about three months before his encounter with police, he turned to making the drug.

The court heard Watts was originally sentenced in the Beenleigh drug court to intensive drug rehabilitation but he absconded after four weeks and had to be resentenced.

Justice Margaret Wilson said she could not declare the 328 days Watts had spent in custody but would take it into account.

She sentenced him to four months jail with immediate parole release.