Man refused bail after allegedly stealing eight-year-old girl on Sunshine Coast

The alleged reasons for a Sunshine Coast father’s brazen abduction of his daughter from a child safety facility have been revealed in court documents, including his stand off with police negotiators.

Sunshine Coast Detective Acting Inspector Scott Wiggins. Picture: Sam Turner

More details have emerged of a Coolum Beach father’s motivations behind the allegedly brazen abduction of his daughter from a child safety facility on the Sunshine Coast.

The allegations of the 44-year-old man’s kidnapping of the eight-year-old from the Maroochydore facility have been disclosed in bail objection documents tendered in court on Friday during the man’s failed bail application on charges of child stealing and trespass.

Police allege the man was involved with child safety from the time his biological daughter was one, with custody of the child being taken at times during her life.

During that time police allegedly received “numerous” reports of harm the child allegedly suffered in relation to her father.

The court was told some of these reports were allegedly substantiated.

Police issued the amber alert for the child on Thursday.

The man was in Maroochydore court on Wednesday when an order was granted for temporary custody of the child to an unnamed carer.

Court documents state he was not allowed to know where the girl resided and his visitation was meant to be supervised.

Police allege the man visited his daughter at the child services facility in Maroochydore about 10.30am on Thursday when he took the child by the hand and fled in his blue HiLux ute.

Police issued the amber alert in response to the child being taken as they feared for her safety.

Sunshine Coast Detective Acting Inspector Scott Wiggins addressed media on Thursday afternoon, saying significant police resources were put toward finding the young girl which involved officers on the Sunshine Coast and in Brisbane.

Polair and drones were also used in the search.

Court documents state the man allegedly had several hours unsupervised with the girl after she was stolen.

The police operation ramped up about 12.30pm when officers received information the man allegedly trespassed with the child on an Eerwah Vale property.

Queensland police car generic. Photo: QPS.

Police allege the property owners were not known to the man and he did not have permission to enter.

The area was cordoned off and officers declared a PSBA, deploying a specialist police force from SERT and PSRT along with PolAir and specialist negotiators.

The man allegedly initially refused to surrender into custody or release the child and remained on the property.

Negotiators spoke to the defendant for about two hours where the man allegedly expressed his dissatisfaction with child safety.

After extended negotiations the man was arrested and interviewed by police.

The child was handed over “safe and well” to emergency services and assessed in an ambulance on site.

Police allege it was “clear” that the man had unlawfully taken the girl with no specific plan for her welfare.

The man was allegedly homeless and drove his daughter to a random rural address with nothing but the clothes on her back, detectives claim.

Bail documents state police did not observe any food or other essential items in the man’s car and said he could not elaborate on what his plan for the next few days was.

Officers spoke to the young girl who allegedly reported the man whispered in her ear, “when I give you the horse ride we will run”.

The scene where a young girl, subject to an amber alert, was found safe and well.

Court documents state the police said her father entered the property in Eerwah Vale because they had seen a police car.

During his interview with officers, police allege the man admitted he understood he did not have custody of the child and he appeared to be strongly obsessed with his perceived failings of child safety.

Police alleged the man stated the plan to take the child was formulated on the morning of the abduction.

Court documents state the man allegedly claimed he took the child as he was concerned for her wellbeing, however he “struggled to answer” when questioned on what his specific concerns were.

The man was not allowed to know where the victim child resided, however, during the unsupervised time with the child, police were concerned the man would have learned the carer’s address.

As the girl knows her carer’s home address off by heart, police and the child’s carer believe the child told her father the address.

The man appeared in Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Friday where duty lawyer Cherisse Breese applied for his bail on strict conditions.

Emergency crews at Eerwah Vale on Thursday afternoon. Picture: Jarrod Tutbury

Police prosecutor Mel Pyke alleged that it was the belief of officers the man “will try again” at taking the child.

Ms Breese said the unemployed man had no previous entries of breaching bail on his history, was not on bail at the time of offending or any other orders for that matter.

She said the only entry on his criminal history was a failure to appear in court in 2021.

The court heard as part of the man’s bail conditions, he could live in Morayfield with his mother and report to Caboolture police.

She told the court risks could be reduced if the 44-year-old man was placed on bail and was at risk of spending too much time in custody.

The court was told the man had not been assessed for his mental health.

The man appeared in court by video from the watch-house on Friday morning. Picture: David Clark

In reading the allegations against the man, magistrate Rod Madsen said it appeared to be a “pretty strong case” with CCTV capturing the alleged incident.

Mr Madsen said from the bail objection before the court, police alleged the man “raised his middle finger” to child safety, “suggesting he doesn’t have a good relationship” with the agency.

“Threatened to shoot police and child safety if they took the child from him,” Mr Madsen alleged, to which Ms Breese said this was denied by the man.

“Then police had to conduct a negotiation with him for the child.”

Mr Madsen said there were “clearly” risks to the child and community and had no confidence any bail conditions could reduce the “obvious” risks and bail was refused.

The scene where a young girl, subject to an amber alert, was found safe and well.