Deaths in custody at Capricornia Correctional Centre

One prisoner died during a struggle with prison staff and another died from an overdose from drugs that were smuggled in. We take a look back at the deaths of inmates at Central Queensland’s prison. FULL DETAILS

Capricornia Correctional Centre just outside of Rockhampton.

In the past 17 years there have been 18 inmate deaths at the Capricornia Correction Centre.

This is the fifth story in an investigative series by The Morning Bulletin’s Vanessa Jarrett into claims of a toxic workplace culture and history at Capricornia Correctional Centre.

Queensland Corrective Services announced in July it had ordered an independent internal review at Capricornia Correctional Centre following concerns from staff.

With the spotlight on the prison north of Rockhampton, we take a look back at some of the most significant incidents to occur at the facility.

All deaths in custody are required by law to be investigated by the State Coroner.

Of the 18 deaths at the Rockhampton jail, 10 were found to be from natural causes and three were from natural causes which potentially could have been avoided if treated earlier.

One prisoner hung himself, one prisoner was assaulted by a fellow inmate and another prisoner was assaulted by prison staff.

An overdose from smuggled drugs was also the cause of another death and one prisoner died as a result of high caffeine levels.

The Capricornia Correctional Centre has a capacity of 750 cells and 957 beds.

In June 2021, there were about 680 inmates incarcerated at the prison.

Capricornia Correctional Centre inmate deaths in order of date:

Wayne Barry Matschoss: died of October 27, 2004 of natural causes.

Mr Matschoss, aged 60 at time of death, had been in jail for six months prior to his death, having served half of his 12-month sentence.

Throughout his brief period of incarceration Mr Matschoss was in regular need of medical attention. He had a history of heart attacks, epilepsy and had been a heavy smoker for 50 years.

He went to the prison medical centre with trouble breathing on October 12 where it was found he had pneumonia and was taken to Rockhampton Hospital. His condition worsened in hospital and he died from natural causes, namely heart failure.

It was determined he was not a well man when he first entered prison.

Stuart Ronald Williams: died on May 17, 2004 of natural causes.

Mr Williams died aged 45 years as an inmate of the Capricornia Correctional Centre.

It was noted he had an extensive history of heart disease and was advised to stop smoking but continued until his death. An autopsy revealed he died of heart failure.

Old photos of cells at Capricornia Correctional Centre.

Ronald Thomas Oram: died on January 6, 2008 of natural causes.

Mr Oram, 49 years-old at time of death, died of a heart attack.

He had complaints of upper gastric pain the day before and was found deceased in his cell at 2am the following morning. He had no known cardiac conditions.

It was noted it took about eight minutes for Corrective Services staff to get to his cell after it was first suspected he was not breathing.

Tofia Josen Mataia: Died on 18 October 2008 after an assault with prison staff.

Mr Mataia was incarcerated on August 18, 2008 for charges of breaking and entering and wilful damage on. He was also later charged with serious assault after an unprovoked assault on a police officer in the watch house.

He had been in custody for almost two months at Capricornia Correctional Centre when without warning or provocation, he assaulted two corrective services officers. This led to a prolonged struggle with up to six officers. He was restrained, handcuffed and marched by several officers to a cell in the detention centre. According to official documents, he was placed on the ground, face down with his hands behind his back and held by five officers who attempted to remove the handcuffs. One officer had his knee in the middle of Mr Mataia’s back and it was noticed that he had stopped breathing. CPR was administered but he could not be revived.

The coroner’s report noted many gaps in the series of events afterwards. The clothes worn by the officers were not seized until four or five hours after the death, meaning the evidence was contaminated, the officers were not isolated after the incident and two officers refused to be interviewed by police at all and they each wrote scant reports. The nurses who attended the scene also forgot to bring a defibrillator.

Mr Mataia had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, during detention in New South Wales three years prior. He also demonstrated a tendency for unprovoked violence while in detention and assaulted a prison officer in a FNQ prison, leading to his transfer to Capricornia.

His death was due to a fatal cardiac arrest because of combined effects of severe heart disease, obesity, schizophrenia, a violent struggle and restraint.

It was determined the officers did not intend to cause serious harm to Mr Mataia.

Jayde Stephen Donovan Biddulph: Died on December 16, 2009 from injuries sustained in an assault with a fellow prisoner.

Mr Biddulph began a relationship with an ex-partner of Ryan Dwyer in July 2009. Mr Dwyer was then incarcerated at Capricornia Correctional Centre with Mr Biddulph and they came into contact for the first time since their imprisonment on the day of the fatal assault. Both men were imprisoned for various property and drug offences.

The pair saw each other in a hallway and a fight began with both parties consenting. Mr Dwyer punched Mr Biddulph who fell to the ground, and he continued to punch him while he was unconscious. It was estimated Mr Dwyer threw around six punches to Mr Biddulph in the head and neck.

A code yellow and blue were ordered and CPR began. Paramedics arrived and extensive resuscitation attempts ensued including IV administration of adrenaline, saline and sodium bicarbonate however failed to revive Mr Biddulph. He was pronounced deceased by a QAS paramedic at 10.20am, about an hour after the fight began.

Mr Biddulph, aged 33, died from traumatic injuries sustained when he was punched in the head and neck.

Mr Dwyer was immediately handcuffed and was charged with murder the following day.

At a Supreme Court trial in 2011, he was found not guilty of murder and guilty of manslaughter and was sentenced to nine years imprisonment.

Findings of the inquest from Mr Biddulph’s death looked at the operations of staff at Capricornia Correctional Centre and why the two men had access to each other when there were known threats.

Eric Handley Watson: died on January 17, 2011 of natural causes.

Mr Watson, aged 75, presented to prison medical staff with deteriorating respiratory symptoms and was diagnosed in late 2010 with advanced terminal lung cancer. He declined chemotherapy and was allocated a prison carer.

He was taken to hospital when his condition deteriorated and later died.

His death was investigated by the State Coroner and it was found he received adequate medical care in prison.

Craig Steven Lingwood: died on May 10, 2011 of natural causes which may been able to be avoided.

Mr Lingwood had been an inmate at Capricornia Correctional Centre for six years before his death.

Mr Lingwood presented to prison medical staff in 2008 with concerns of a mole on his back. The inquest of his death went into detail about the treatment he received at prison and at the hospital. He was eventually diagnosed with a tumour and skin cancer and in 2011, it had spread to his femur. He did receive radiation in Brisbane and upon his return to the Rockhampton prison, he was then admitted to the palliative care unit at Rockhampton Hospital as his condition worsened.

He died at the age of 45 with skin cancer as the cause. The inquest went into significant detail with medical reports and it was determined his death could have been prevented if he was treated appropriately earlier.

Matthew Maurice Tiers: died on May 14, 2011 of natural causes which may have been able to be avoided.

At the time of his death, aged 53, Mr Tiers was incarcerated for breaching conditions of his parole. He was imprisoned at Capricornia Correctional Centre on May 6.

He was reported to have poor health due to long-term chronic alcohol abuse and refused medical treatment. During his time in prison, he was placed on an alcohol withdrawal regime. A few days into his sentence, he was diagnosed with pneumonia and was taken to Rockhampton Hospital for intensive treatment. He developed septic shock and after permission from his family, treatment was withdrawn and he died.

His death was investigated and it was noted that if the infection had been diagnosed earlier, it may have improved his chance of survival.

Overall it was determined the health care provided to him was adequate.

Capricornia Correctional Centre at Etna Creek outside Rockhampton.

Robert John Quartermain: Died on June 7, 2011 of natural causes.

Mr Quartermain, was 67 years-old at the time of death.

He suffered from breathing difficulties and had a cardiac arrest and was taken to Rockhampton Hospital where he died.

The State Coroner stated the prison medical care was “reasonable and appropriate”.

John Michael Spence: died on September 4, 2013 from high caffeine levels.

Mr Spence died in the health centre at the Capricornia Correctional Centre at 51 years of age.

He had just returned to the prison that day after spending five days in the Rockhampton Watchhouse.

Mr Spence had very poor health with a history of alcoholism which caused seizures, malnutrition and poor self-care.

He was taken to the Health Centre where it was noted he had difficulty walking, suffered a seizure, was behaving bizarrely, jumping around and dancing but he recovered and was noted to be alert.

A few hours later on a routine check, a nurse realised he was not breathing and had no pulse. Resuscitation began but was unsuccessful and he was declared deceased.

An autopsy revealed he had a heart disease and a high level of caffeine was detected, which contributed to his death. The source of the caffeine could not be found.

The State Coroner determined the response of the officers and medical staff was adequate, given he had a history of these seizures and the heart disease history was not known.

Michael Wayne Blutcher: died on September 17, 2013, from a drug overdose.

Mr Blutcher, aged 31 at time of death, had been incarcerated since March 2013. He had illicit drug use history and was going through morphine withdrawal during his prison time.

On the morning of his death, he was outside in the low security farm when a can was thrown over the fence by a fellow prisoner. The can contained a fentanyl path, cannabis, three syringes and gravel which he shared with two other prisoners.

Mr Blutcher was reported to be slurring his words and “his eyes were all over the place”.

He was found in his cell, leaning against the wall with a syringe in his hand and a needle in his arm. A code blue was called and prison staff administered CPR and paramedics arrived. He could not be resuscitated and was pronounced dead.

The autopsy determined the cause of death as an overdose of fentanyl.

An inquest into the death revealed the drugs were smuggled in and it was requested the external CCTV surveillance and lighting at the farm be improved.

Capricornia Correctional Centre houses male prisoners only.

Paul Robert Wise: died on August 17, 2016 of natural causes.

Mr Wise, aged 48 at time of death, was found deceased in his bed in the morning rounds.

He returned to Capricornia Correctional Centre a month earlier after failing a drug test while on parole.

An autopsy determined he had a severe heart disease and may have died of a heart attack.

Frederick Row Row: died on August 24, 2016 by suicide.

Mr Row Row was found dead, by hanging himself, in the detention centre at the Capricornia Correctional Centre.

He had been taken there after he assaulted another prisoner.

Prior to his death, Mr Row Row was involved in a number of incidents at the prison including the assault of a prisoner officer.

He was described as a “influential prisoner” with a strong network of men in the prison.

Cary James Saunders: died on October 24, 2017 of natural causes which the family argued could have been avoided.

Mr Saunders had been serving a sentence of six years for offences including maintaining a sexual relationship with a child, indecent treatment of a child, stupefying to commit an indictable offence and common assault.

He was transferred to Capricornia Correctional Centre eight months before his death. He also served time at Townsville and Brisbane prisons.

Mr Saunders was taken to Rockhampton Hospital for a suspected infection on October 15 and was transferred to a Brisbane hospital where he died 11 days later.

The inquest into his death noted his family had concerns that he was required to sleep on a mattress on the floor of his cell with a hernia. He also had suffered significant weight loss.

The documents detailed Mr Saunders shared a cell with another prisoner in a protection unit as the prison was operating above its built capacity. He slept on a mattress on the floor of his cell.

The inquest determined he was provided with adequate care.

Lawrence Sylvester Smith: died on December 17, 2017 of natural causes.

Mr Smith, 81 at the time of death, was detained under the Dangerous Prisoners (sexual offenders) Act. He was incarcerated for various sexual offences beginning in 1987 including counts of incest, indecent treatment of children under 16 and 12 years and breaching his reporting orders.

Mr Smith was released from Capricornia Correctional Centre and was under a supervision order. In November 2017, he was suffering from multiple diseases and due to a lack of suitable community-based nursing accommodation, he was taken back into prison for indefinite medical care. He suffered from multiple comorbidities including Type 2 Diabetes, eye disease, cardiovascular disease, hypercholesterolaemia, angina, chronic kidney disease and congestive heart failure. He suffered a stroke on December 7 and was taken to hospital where he later died.

Unrelated to the cause of his death, during his time in prison, he also had his fingers crushed, leading to an amputation. In November 2017, two of his fingers were severely crushed when his fingers were in the door as a prisoner kicked the door behind him. It was alleged the prisoner did not know Mr Smith’s hand was there. His fingers were reattached in surgery at Rockhampton Hospital but 15 days later his fingers turned black and were amputated.

It was determined his medical care at the prison and hospital was adequate and his death could not be prevented.

Capricornia Correctional Centre has 750 cells and 957 beds.

Dennis Petzler: died on July 23, 2018 of natural causes.

At the time of his death, Mr Petzler was incarcerated for break and enter with violence, threatening violence, wilful damage and assault.

He presented some sickness in early July and was treated by prison medical staff and when admitted to Rockhampton Hospital was diagnosed with lung and liver cancer. He later contracted pneumonia and died in hospital a week later, aged 59.

Alexander David Aitkenhead: died on May 10, 2019 of natural causes.

Mr Aitkenhead was a frail man aged 86 years at the time of his death.

He suffered from many chronic illnesses and had been in and out of the medical unit at the prison and Rockhampton Hospital since his arrival to the prison in 2015.

He was serving a sentence at the Capricornia Correctional Centre for two counts of rape and three counts of indecent treatment of girls under 14 years, committed over a six-year period in the 80s.

He died while at Rockhampton Hospital and the cause of death was determined to be heart disease.

Phillip John Wust: died on January 8, 2020 of natural causes.

Mr Wust died from liver cancer at the Rockhampton Hospital at the age of 56 years old.

At the time of his death he had been serving a life sentence for murder.

Mr Wust served 14 years of his sentence when in 2004 he was granted release to work.

He had a life outside of jail in Brisbane and got married however he tested positive to drugs in urine samples and was returned to custody twice.

In 2016 he was charged with common assault and his parole was cancelled on April 18, 2016. He was transferred back to Capricornia Correctional Centre two and half years before his death.

He was diagnosed with chronic liver disease in 2018 and his family stated prison staff facilitated his medical appointments and his death was not a result of his treatment in prison.