Peter John Cook fined for stealing to impress a lady friend

Dating can be a minefield and can even land you in court as one Whitsunday romancer found out recently.

The Airlie Beach man said “a couple of reds at lunch” were to blame for ​his forgetfulness. File photo

“The next time you want to impress a young lady, try and do it lawfully” was a magistrate’s advice for a Whitsunday mine operator who “forgot to pay” for a spontaneous gift while out on a date.

Peter John Cook, 44, copped a $250 fine for stealing a hat from a South Brisbane souvenir shop after taking a woman out for lunch in the area on March 9.

Pleading guilty to one charge of unauthorised dealing with shop goods, Cook told Bowen Magistrates Court he picked a $35 fedora-style hat off a rack that afternoon and gave it to his date to wear because he “thought she’d look good in it”.

The couple, who had “had a couple of reds at lunch,” according to Cook, then walked off and caught a taxi, without paying for the hat.

“We got in the cab and had the hat, and it was too late to go back,” he said.

He said he was unaware of the fate of the hat as he was no longer dating the woman he had given it to.

Magistrate James Morton remarked on the “very long, drawn-out, and protracted” police investigation into the theft, which involved reviewing CCTV footage from the shopping centre, contacting the cab company for details of the booking, and tracking Cook down via his mobile phone number.

He ordered Cook to pay the shop $34.99 restitution for the hat.

A conviction was not recorded.