NAMED: 12 Central Qld drug dealers exposed
A Rockhampton corner has become a cluster for crime following 37 drug offences recorded in the one spot. It comes as CQ’s latest list of newly-convicted drug dealers can be named. Full list.
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Police have raided many houses and busted numerous drug operations belonging to bikies, drug addicts and friendly mates in the Central Queensland region.
According to Queensland Police data, one of the biggest hot spots in the area is near the corner of Burnett and Musgrave streets at Berserker, Rockhampton, with 73 reported drug offences.
Another major cluster, unsurprisingly, is the Rockhampton Police Station on the corner of Bolsover and Denham streets with 37 drug offences.
A cluster of 42 offences was also recorded in the vicinity of the Eventide Home in Wandal.
The Yeppoon CBD is also a major location with 17 offences recorded.
And a cluster of 41 offences was recorded near the Emerald CBD.
Over to Gladstone - 15 offences happened on the corner of Larson Street and the Bruce Highway in Miriam Vale alone, and 18 offences in Ballantine Street at Clinton.
Here are 12 offenders who have been sentenced for drug dealing and trafficking in 2021:
Adam Lee Moore
Moore was caught running a drug operation while on parole and forged documents to make him look better during sentencing.
Police raided his house in Norman Gardens and his mother’s house elsewhere on July 24, 2019, the Supreme Court in Rockhampton heard.
They found 6.99g of pure methamphetamine, 8.23g of testosterone and 60 xanax tablets at Moore’s house.
There was 49.751g of pure meth, 275g of marijuana, 48 capsules of steroids and a taser at his mum’s house.
Police also found $19,520 across the two houses.
Defence barrister Sheridan Shaw said she personally checked the documents from Narcotics Anonymous and completion certificates demonstrating his rehabilitation.
Moore was convicted of drug trafficking and forging documents aimed at perverting the course of justice.
Justice Graeme Crow sentenced him to six years imprisonment with parole eligibility on May 1, 2023.
Jase Colin Smith
The 27-year-old trafficked drugs to no fewer than 19 customers, with 44 marijuana deals and 10 methamphetamine supplies between September 26, 2019 until his arrest on April 10, 2020.
Justice Crow told the Supreme Court in Rockhampton that Smith regularly sourced drugs to fulfil the requests of his customers.
The offending was discovered following a search warrant on his phone.
Defence barrister Tom Polley said Smith had used marijuana since age 12 and meth since 18.
Smith pleaded guilty to three counts of drug possession, one count of drug trafficking, one count of possessing drug utensils and one count of possessing anything used in the commission of a crime.
He was sentenced to three years imprisonment and was released on parole on November 25.
Aaron James Morgan
The former Mongrel Mob bikie’s drug supplies were found on another drug user’s phone, followed by a raid of Morgan’s house and arrest at workplace in Rockhampton.
The Rockhampton District Court heard he offered to supply testosterone on August 18, 2020.
Crown prosecutor Edward Fleetwood said Morgan told police $6500 was from an ‘imaginary friend’.
Defence barrister Maree Willey said Morgan had started using methamphetamines when he was 18 but stopped after being incarcerated in 2014.
Judge Michael Burnett sentenced Morgan to 18 months imprisonment and he will be released on parole on March 13, 2022.
Daniel Frederick Smith
The 32-year-old was first injected with drugs by his mum when he was 13 and it led to him committing many criminal offences throughout his life.
Smith was found in a car on Talford Street at Allenstown on September 17, 2019, wanted on multiple warrants.
The Supreme Court heard he jumped out of the car and ran into a block of units to escape.
He was caught and his mate’s phone was found, evidence and all.
Police found that he trafficked methamphetamine from September 4 to 18, 2019, carrying out 27 deals.
The court also heard Smith choked his 55-year-old mother with a phone charger at 6.15pm on April 29, 2020. His mother was at his court sentencing in support of her son.
Smith had started using marijuana when he was 11 years old.
Smith pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and choking and was sentenced to five years imprisonment with suspended sentences activated.
He was granted immediate parole eligibility due to parole board delays.
Belinda Jayne Pollock
The 39-year-old carried out at least 23 supplies for about 45.75g of methamphetamine to about 15 customers, the Supreme Court heard.
Police executed a search warrant on her Gladstone house and found a phone, a stolen tablet, 0.11g of meth, empty clip seal bags, seven water pipes, digital scales, a joint and a marijuana bud on July 23, 2020.
Defence barrister Julie Marsden said Pollock had engaged with services in the past year and wanted to remain drug free.
Pollock pleaded guilty to one count of drug trafficking, three counts of drug possession, one count of receiving tainted property, two counts of possessing items used in the commission of a drug offence, two count of possessing drug utensils, one count of driving while demerit point suspended and one count of drug driving.
Justice Crow sentenced her to 3.5 years imprisonment with immediate parole eligibility.
Dale Chris Bauer
The 52-year-old trafficked wholesale quantities of methamphetamine between June 10, 2020 and October 9, 2020, the Supreme Court heard.
Crown prosecutor Harriet Hall-Pearce said Bauer was arrested in Clinton and police found 37.478g of pure meth, about $6000 in cash, a quantity of loose ammunition and a handgun on October 8, 2020.
Police searched his home on Hansen Crescent and found a further $48,550 in cash.
Defence barrister Martin Longhurst said the trafficking period was short and Bauer only provided meth to one of his four friends.
He pleaded guilty to one count of drug trafficking, one count of drug possession over 3g and three counts of drug possession.
He was sentenced to eight years imprisonment with parole eligibility on February 1, 2023.
Jessie Allana Storm Bingham-James and Dillon Marshall
The young Central Queensland couple trafficked drugs in the Rockhampton area over seven months on 204 occasions to at least 52 customers.
During a raid on their home on March 10, 2020, police found 430 grams of marijuana and some cash.
Crown prosecutor Matthew Sutton told the Rockhampton District Court on July 29, 2021 they were found in possession of two police scanners and they would pass on the information to their clients.
Marshall’s defence barrister Julie Marsden said he had been in a relationship for eight years with Bingham-James, but he hadn’t heard from her in months and considered the relationship to be over.
She said Marshall had watched a YouTube video which motivated him to start growing weed.
Bingham-James’ defence barrister Jordan Ahlstrand said she was one of 22 kids on her abusive mother’s side.
She pleaded guilty to one count each of trafficking drugs, producing drugs, possessing drugs, among other offences.
Judge Clarke sentenced Bingham-James to two years prison with immediate parole release.
Marshall pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking, producing drugs, possessing drugs, possessing the police scanners and other offences.
He was sentenced to 2.5 years imprisonment with immediate parole, and had already served 363 days presentence custody.
Tyson Jeffrey Ellis
When Ellis drove through the McDonalds Gladstone drive-through at 4.40am, he lost control of the car and the tray hit a sign causing $6476 in damages.
He sped away from the scene, without leaving his information, and eventually crashed into a power pole, the Supreme Court in Rockhampton heard on April 27, 2020.
Ellis’ house was raided on February 12, 2020 where police found more than 8.86g of pure meth, lyrica, amitriptyline, morphine, electric scales, clip seal bags, a firearm and $900.
This was on top of a whopping 368g of marijuana.
Just over two months after being let out on bail, Ellis was busted with 0.81g of meth and 2.09g of a cutting agent.
Ellis’ defence barrister Tom Polley said he had been sober for five or six years in the past but got back into drugs after losing his Hervey Bay job and his relationship breakdown.
Mr Polley said Ellis started using marijuana due to his peers and started meth by age 16.
He pleaded guilty to 20 offences including two counts of trafficking, one count of possessing more than 2g of drugs, two counts of possessing weapons of which one was altered, among others.
Justice Crow sentenced him to four years imprisonment with the balance to be suspended after being released on August 26, 2021, for the first trafficking count.
He was sentenced to three years imprisonment for the second trafficking count with parole release on August 26, 2021.
Anthony John Robert Featherstone
The 45-year-old claimed he was Gladstone’s ‘second biggest drug dealer’.
Justice Crow told the Supreme Court that he accepted, on the balance of probabilities, Featherstone was in debt to his suppliers by about $250,000. This was a contested fact.
The prosecution claimed to the court that Featherstone’s drug trafficking increased after his release on bail, evident by a Facebook message in which Featherstone admitted to selling 4kg of meth in four days for $400,000.
He pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and other offences in the contested hearing.
Featherstone had two suspended sentences activated and was sentenced to seven years imprisonment with parole eligibility on January 22, 2023.
Rhys Gaukroger
The 30-year-old offended for four years before being caught out after another drug user’s phone was searched.
Gaukroger dealt 130g of marijuana to the drug user before police raided the defendant’s Frenchville house on February 7, 2021.
They found 13 clip seal bags and three cryovac bags, each containing 730g of green.
Cannabis seeds were also found in a bowl.
The Rockhampton District Court heard that he told police he used marijuana to wean himself off meth.
Defence barrister Jordan Ahlstrand said Gaukroger had been in a four-year relationship, which was characterised by drugs, and only supplied the marijuana to his friends.
He pleaded guilty to six counts of drug supply, one count of possessing over 500g of marijuana, two counts of possessing items used in the commission of crime and one count of possessing drug utensils.
Gaukroger was sentenced to nine months imprisonment suspended for two years.
Elijah Kenneth Doughty
The 28-year-old Koongal resident was caught trafficking marijuana and methamphetamine over two months in 2018.
He made 51 supplies to 16 customers and would sometimes take payment of goods rather than money, such as ear pods.
Police raided his Koongal house on November 30, 2018 and he told police to ‘hurry the f--k up and get out of here.”
There were six cryovac bags each with 6g of drugs, as well as 78g of a cutting agent, unused clip-seal bags, a tick sheet with five names on it, a homemade pipe made out of PVC and counterfeit $100 bills.
The Supreme Court heard he would give his customers instructions such as to park down the street and let him know when they arrived, then tell them their drugs were under the welcome mat, in an effort to hide his drug offending from his then partner.
Defence barrister Jordan Ahlstrand said Doughty used drugs to fund his own habit.
He pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and was sentenced to three years imprisonment with immediate parole.
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