‘Get off the drugs’: Zachary Phillip Charles Palmer busted in Zilzie home raid and twice drug-driving

The 31-year-old man, who has been doing home duties including looking after children while his partner works, is fast running out of chances to avoid a jail sentence.

Zachary Phillip Charles Palmer leaves Yeppoon Courthouse on February 24, 2022.

A Capricorn Coast man busted in a drug raid at his Zilzie residence was also caught drug-driving twice in a matter of months.

Zachary Phillip Charles Palmer, 31, pleaded guilty in Yeppoon Magistrates Court on February 24 to drugs charges including cannabis possession, possession of drugs utensils, and two counts of drug-driving.

The court heard that police busted Palmer drug-driving with cannabis in his system at Park Street on November 27 last year.

Police Prosecutor Clancy Fox said Palmer told police that he was a daily user of cannabis.

Two days later police executed a search warrant at Palmer’s residence at San Marino Way, Zilzie.

Mr Fox said during that search, police found 8.1g of cannabis in a clip-seal bag, 152 cannabis seeds in another clip-seal bag, as well as numerous drugs utensils.

Then on December 12, police again caught Palmer drug-driving, this time on Hartley St, Zilzie, again with cannabis in his system.

The court heard that Palmer had numerous drugs offences on his criminal history.

Solicitor Joanne Madden said Palmer had not worked for the past year-and-a-half and he had been doing home duties including looking after two children while his partner worked.

Ms Madden said Palmer did now accept that he needed to do something about his drug problem.

Magistrate Philippa Beckinsale said it was concerning that Palmer was caring for children while being a drug user, especially considering one was a teenager at an impressionable age.

Ms Beckinsale told Palmer: “Get off the drugs.”

She placed Palmer on 18 months’ probation with conditions, and disqualified him from driving for four months.

Convictions were recorded.