Isaac William Ford caught with 16 bottles of cannabis oil on his way to Happy Daze music festival

A Mundubbera man on the way to a Whitsunday music festival for his birthday claimed he had the 16 bottles for health reasons.

The Mundubbera man said he thought the laws around cannabis oil were ‘quite lenient’ given its medicinal uses. Picture: File

A Mundubbera man travelling with 16 bottles of cannabis oil in a car en route to the Happy Daze music festival claimed he obtained the substance on the advice of healthcare professionals.

Police put a damper on Isaac William Ford’s plans to celebrate his birthday at the Yalboroo festival on May 28, charging him with the attempt to supply dangerous drugs, as well as possess utensils, and two counts of possess dangerous drugs after intercepting him on Cathu O’Connell River Rd about 1.30pm.

Prosecutor Robert Beamish told Proserpine Magistrates Court police found 16 of the 25mL bottles of cannabis oil, plus a grinder, and four grams of green leafy material later identified as marijuana when they searched his vehicle.

Mr Beamish said Ford told police he intended to use the oil himself and “give some to his friends and family”.

Representing himself in court on Monday, Ford pleaded guilty to all charges but said he bought the oil from a market stall in Nimbin, New South Wales, for personal use, in what he thought was a legal transaction.

He said both a psychiatrist and a psychologist supported his use of cannabis oil to treat symptoms for a recently diagnosed bipolar disorder, but he was still “in the process” of getting a prescription.

“I assumed the laws around it were quite lenient”, he said, adding that it was “quite expensive to get [the oil] from the doctor” and he was struggling financially after leaving his job at a citrus packing factory to work on his mental health.

The 31 year old said it was “unfortunate” he had not removed the bottles, for which he paid $180, from his car before driving to the festival, but insisted he had not been intending to distribute the oil at the event.

He said he would have contested the supply charge, had he been able to afford a lawyer.

“It’s not a recreational drug,” he said.

“I’ve been instructed on how to use it because the medications that I’ve been prescribed don’t necessarily work for me.”

Magistrate James Morton noted a previous conviction for supplying dangerous drugs on Ford’s record before handing down his sentence.

He ordered that Ford pay a $600 fine and forfeit the items seized in the search, with convictions recorded for all charges.

“If you want to use illicit drugs, go and get them lawfully,” Mr Morton said.