Samantha Lee Zuch jailed over threesome robbery plot to steal gold bullion

A pair of ‘lame brain’ thieves tried to lure a Queensland man into a false sense of security by suggesting a threesome in a plot to steal thousands of dollars worth of gold bullion.

A Queensland man was offered a threesome in a plot to steal his gold — but it all went south quickly.

A pair of “amateur and pathetic” thieves tried to lure a man into a false sense of security by suggesting a threesome in a plot to steal $12,000 worth of gold bullion.

But he became suspicious when only one woman joined him in the shower of his Nebo Rd motel room and ultimately busted her co-offender rummaging through his belongings.

The scene, that could have been the script of a bad Hollywood movie, unfolded when Samantha Lee Zuch had arranged to meet up with her victim at his motel room, and brought her friend.

The day before the robbery Zuch and the victim had a fight.

He had been staying with her and they had been involved in a “friend with benefits” relationship.

The court heard they argued after he had shown her his gold ingots worth about $12,000, so he moved out.

The next day she apologised and wanted to meet up. Unbeknown to him — a plan had been formed to take his gold to feed a drug habit.

A failed threesome plot

At 1.12pm August 10, 2023 and Zuch arrived at the motel with her friend, another woman, and in what crown prosecutor Monique Sheppard labelled “rather pathetic and amateurish”, both signed in using their driver’s licences.

Zuch, a 35 meth addicted mum of four, got herself and mate into his room, and the duo “suggested the three of them engage in a threesome”. He agreed.

The court heard the victim and Zuch went into the shower where she performed a sex act on him, while the friend lingered in the bedroom, rummaging through his belongings.

Zuch took her victim to the shower, but he started to wonder where the other woman was.

“He’s become concerned about where was the other woman and has ultimately got out of the shower and seen (the friend) going through the bag that contained his gold bullion,” Ms Sheppard said.

He asked the duo to leave while they tried to delay with the friend attempting some “form of a panic attack”.

She told him “she was cleaning up and getting the bed ready”.

The duo also gave their victim a sob story resulting in them being allowed to stay in the room.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door and two men, known to the women and the “muscle” side of the plan, entered the room.
A four-against one tussle for the gold started that began in room and ended on the sidewalk as the victim desperately tried to hang on to his property.

CCTV footage captured the struggle for the bag on the footpath, in broad daylight next to one of Mackay’s busiest streets.

Ms Sheppard said Zuch can be seen standing to one side trying to or pretending to “stay out of it”.

Ultimately the four managed to flee with the bag and all got into the same vehicle. Zuch was arrested soon after.

‘Gold dust in their eyes’

She pleaded guilty to robbery in company, which Ms Sheppard said involved some serious aspects.

“She concocted with (her friend) a ruse to entice the (victim) to engage in a threesome so that he’d be distracted and the gold bullion could be stolen from him,” Ms Sheppard said.

Violence was used both in the unit and on the street, albeit with minimal injuries.

It was conceded Zuch was not involved in the violence but would have known that would happen.

Ms Sheppard submitted for three years jail with actual custody, despite her minimal history that did not involve entries for violence.

The court heard none of the alleged co-offenders have entered pleas.

Barrister George Kalimnios, instructed by Barron and Allen Lawyers, said there was nothing that suggested Zuch was a primary offender or instigated anything, but it was acknowledged that she was aware of the gold.

Zuch knew of the gold.

Judge Gregory Lynham said the facts “speaks of they had gold dust in their eyes and saw an opportunity of robbing the (victim)”.

Mr Kalimnios said the CCTV showed “a complete lack of any planning or thought”.

He also described the offending as opportunistic, and continued to push his client’s less active role in the actual robbery in that it was her friend who went through the victim’s belongings and she was standing on the footpath when the struggle for the bag ensued.

Mr Kalimnios described his client as having “quite a volatile and miserable upbringing” littered with drugs and domestic violence, but said Zuch had been largely unknown to the criminal courts for violence.

The court heard she had four children aged 10 to 15. Mr Kalimnios said any custodial sentence would “sever largely” that relationship.

‘This was a lame brained scheme’

Mr Kalimnios pushed for two years jail with immediate parole, accepting it was a “hard sell” but argued it would “facilitate rehabilitation”.

The court heard Zuch was a drug addict using meth and MDMA and at the time of the offending had “given up” on life.

“This was not a spontaneous act on your behalf and your co-offenders to go and rob the (victim),” Judge Gregory Lynham said, adding it was clear after Zuch became aware of the gold “some plot was decided between you and your co-offenders to go around and rob him of the gold”.

Judge Lynham said Zuch was at least a participant in the plan because she had initiated the contact with the victim and accepted she was meant to distract him with the sexual act in the shower while the other woman took the gold.

“That plan came unstuck because it seems (he) became suspicious and exited the shower,” Judge Lynham said, also accepting the two men travelled with the women as part of the plan “as muscle” if the threesome plan failed.

“This was a lame brained scheme, it was amateurish, it was incredibly stupid. The simple reality that you were always going to get caught.”

Judge Lynham accepted Zuch had a “difficult, dysfunctional and quite frankly appalling upbringing”, that also involved two of her partners taking their own lives, “and perhaps denied the opportunities that otherwise might have been presented to you in life”.

He agreed it was not surprising she became addicted to meth and MDMA, and that the offending “was born out of very pathetic attempt to try and get money ultimately to feed your drug addiction”.

Ultimately Judge Lynham said the offending was so serious there was no alternative but to send Zuch to jail.
He handed her three-year sentence with parole release on August 28, 2025 after spending six months in custody. A conviction was recorded.

On learning she would be sent to jail Zuch yelled and cried, “I can’t go to jail. It’s not me, I didn’t f--king take it they did.”

Sobbing uncontrollably at the penalty she further yelled, “I can’t go to jail. Appeal it. You got it all wrong” before being led away.