‘Dangerous’ Mackay man drives into woman’s gate hours after domestic violence order

Hours after a man was slapped with court orders banning him from a woman’s property, he allegedly drove into her front gate while screaming she would “f-ck everything” and calling her a “dirty sl-t”.

Hours after a man was slapped with court orders banning him from a woman’s property, he went there and drove into her front gate while screaming she would “f-ck everything” and calling her a “dirty sl-t”.

A man who allegedly drove into a woman’s front gate hours after facing court for similar domestic violence offences was described as “dangerous” by the magistrate.

Legal Aid lawyer Rosie Varley represented the Mackay man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, in making an application for bail after his arrest.

Yet Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan had been the same judge who the man faced in the morning before the terrifying incident, and spoke at length about his alleged offending.

“On July 25 at 4pm, later in the day that I made the order, it’s alleged the defendant returned to the aggrieved’s address (and) drove his vehicle into the front gate, breaking off one of the wooden palings and bending the metal bolt,” Ms Hartigan said.

“The defendant yelled at the aggrieved words to the effect of ‘You will f-ck everything, you dirty sl-t’ (and she) witnessed him driving away at speed, revving the engine loudly.

“The fact that the order was made in the morning ... in circumstances where it must have been, at most, two hours earlier that that order was made .... it’s just straight back at it.”
The court heard on one occasion the man allegedly got out of a car with the woman at the Nebo Rd and Bridge Rd intersection, slamming the door twice before the woman drove through a red light “out of fear” to escape him.

The man faces a host of charges including unlawful stalking, wilful damage, and multiple domestic violence breaches.

Ms Hartigan also outlined the “ongoing pattern” of harassment consisting a stalking charge, with the victim blocking him, buying a new phone, but still seeing the defendant appear at her workplace and her daughter’s workplace.

“Two occasions were on the same day, causing one of her work colleagues to essentially be in a foetal position on the floor because she was so scared,” the court heard.

“What I also consider very very serious (is he) is someone who has a very, very violent criminal history and lengthy criminal history for domestic violence offending.

“He has had 10 separate DV orders .... overall nine separate aggrieveds have had orders for (him and) he’s been to jail for years at a time, (once for) throwing two knives at an aggrieved.

“I actually consider him to be dangerous to (the aggrieved), to the children, to members of the community he hardly knows.

“I can’t possibly let him out.”

The man’s bail application was rejected and his matters were adjourned to August 19.