Drug user Amanda Betty Cowan stole items to pay for Airbnbs

A Rockhampton mother hard on her luck for the past four years has been deceiving her young son about her lifestyle, stealing high end items to sell so she can pay for Airbnbs when she has custody of her only child.

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A Rockhampton mother hard on her luck for the past four years has been deceiving her young son about her lifestyle, stealing high-end items to sell so she can pay for Airbnbs when she has custody of her only child.

Amanda Betty Cowan, 40, stole an airfryer worth $1200 and many other items such as vacuum cleaners, perfume, security cameras and a trolley full of Aldi specials to fund a fantasy lifestyle on weekends.

She was sentenced in Rockhampton Magistrates Court on March 24 for 17 counts of stealing, one for possessing tainted property, one for driving while demerit point suspended, one for possessing drug utensils, one for possessing dangerous drugs, one of shop lifting and one contravening police requirement.

Police prosecutor Sergeant David Longhurst said it was persistent offending of high volume stealing.

Defence lawyer Lauren Townsend said her client, who had worked for the Crazy Joker and Big Dog Support Services in the past, hadn’t worked for 12 months, lost her house, her car was taken by her husband, she had to relinquish her majority care of her 12-year-old son to her husband and has been couch surfing.

She said Cowan’s life started spiralling after her husband was a victim of a crime on Christmas Day in 2019.

Ms Townsend said Cowan’s husband struggled to get clearance to return to work at the mines and it took six months for a victim of crime payout.

“So the family had financial issue and Cowan was the sole breadwinner,” she said.

Ms Townsend said her client, who had not been before the courts since 2006 before this life spiral, returned to drug use to cope with the stressors and her marriage broke down.

She said Cowan had been homeless since October 2022 but still had custody of her son on weekends.

“The items she stole to sell so she can afford Airbnbs so that her son isn’t aware of her current circumstances,” Ms Townsend said.

She said her client had been trying to change her circumstances, was seeing a psychologist, looking for stable accommodation and wanted to gain employment.

Ms Townsend said Cowan was aware people may not want to employ her given this offending, but she was willing to do volunteer work until she could gain trust for a paid job.

Magistrate Grace Kahlert said Cowan’s offending started in August 2022 and stopped on March 11.

She said her criminal record showed she was on three suspended sentences at the time.

Ms Kahlert ordered Cowan to complete 200 hours of community service within 12 months, disqualified her from driving for six months and extended the operational period of her suspended sentences by six months.

Convictions were recorded.