Young, dumb and immature crims of Qld since 2024 listed
Queensland has had a string of crimes committed by young adults. These are some of the cases. SEE THE LIST
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Queensland has had a string of crimes committed by young adults.
These are some of the cases heard about people whose actions landed them in court.
See the full list below >>>
Yarran Paul James Minehan, 27
A man could be released from prison in three months after he grabbed an older woman’s hand and demanded she give him her “f---ing keys”.
Yarran Paul James Minehan spent six months in jail up until his sentence in the Maroochydore Magistrates Court in May for a flurry of crimes despite already being on parole.
The man was sentenced for the desperate and violent incident that left his victim frightened following his guilty pleas to common assault, stealing, attempted stealing, obstructing police and possessing drug utensils.
Police prosecutor Pedau Grabbe said the common assault involved Minehan grabbing the hand of a 67-year-old woman and demanding she give him the keys to her car after approaching from behind the vehicle.
The court heard the Geelong West man came onto police radar again when officers were called to a disturbance in Maroochydore.
Police tried to arrest the 27-year-old when he attempted to pull his arms away. He braced himself before he tried to throw himself down the stairs.
Among his other crimes were possessing a pipe used for drugs and stealing alcohol.
He spent months in custody up until his sentence hearing after his parole was suspended, with his full time discharge date being August 4.
Magistrate Rod Madsen sentenced the Geelong West man to 80 days’ jail, with immediate parole eligibility.
Jai Dylan Clarke, 23
A Buddina man will continue to remain behind bars for his latest violent crimes of assaulting two police officers after he jumped from their vehicle while under arrest.
Jai Dylan Clarke is no stranger to time in prison, having already received lengthy jail terms for a box cutter attack on a teenage girl and an armed robbery of a car which led to a police chase.
Maroochydore Magistrates Court heard in May the 23-year-old’s latest crimes on February 28 following an alleged domestic violence incident between him and his father.
Police prosecutor Bec Lambert said Clarke, who was on parole at the time, was arrested at the scene and placed into a police vehicle when he enacted his escape.
Sergeant Lambert said the Buddina man removed one of his handcuffs and jumped out of the police vehicle by opening a window.
The court heard Clarke took police on a short chase but was apprehended. During his arrest however, the 23-year-old lashed out, labelled a “donkey kick”.
He was charged with two counts of serious assault police and one of escaping custody, possessing a weapon and possessing a syringe.
The Buddina man was remanded in custody and spent 76 days in jail until his appearance by video in court where he pleaded guilty to all charges.
Defence lawyer Rod Morgan said Clarke was on parole for seven months prior to his arrest with no issues, which included being clean from his meth addiction while working in roofing.
Clarke was jailed for 12 months’ with a parole eligibility date set at June 28.
This sentence is cumulative on the Buddina man’s previous sentence he was already serving which has a full time discharge date of 2028.
Raven Bianca Buck, 26
A TikTok-famous mum lived a luxurious lifestyle after using money from a GST fraud to buy a Mercedes-Benz and $6000 worth of jewellery in one day, a court heard in May.
Raven Bianca Buck, 26, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering in Beenleigh District Court.
The court heard her then boyfriend allegedly falsely lodged business activity statements with his associates to claim GST refunds, successfully earning more than $151,000, before more than $700,000 worth of failed attempts were stopped by the Australian Taxation Office.
The then 23-year-old Buck received more than $48,000 in 13 bank transfers from them over five months between March and August in 2022.
Crown prosecutor Lauren Hall said the investigation revealed Buck withdrew at least $25,000 cash.
The court was told that the young woman was in an abusive relationship with her former partner and suffered mental health issues, but she had more than three years of stable employment and worked hard as a single mother.
Buck was weeping when the court heard about her personal circumstances. At one point Judge Amanda McDonnell had to pause and offer tissues to her.
Judge McDonnell said she reduced her penalty, as the youthful offender had limited criminal history and pleaded early to her offending.
Buck was sentenced to 18 months’ jail, wholly suspended for the same duration.
Sam Hennessy, 27
A meth-trafficking mum in November 2024 learned she will not have to go back to jail after a supreme court judge agreed it would undo all her rehabilitative efforts.
Sam Hennessy had been peddling methylamphetamines to 13 customers for just more than one month between December 2021 and February 2022 in South Mackay.
Crown prosecutor Tiffany Lawrence said this marked a significant escalation in her criminal conduct given her criminal history.
Mackay Supreme Court heard then 27, she ran a wholesale trafficking business, supplying meth 23 times in quantities from one gram to a half ball with the price ranging from $400 to $800.
The court heard Hennessy was arrested after police stopped a vehicle she was driving on February 5, 2022 – a search uncovered eight clip seal bags containing small amounts of meth. Hennessy denied the drugs were hers.
Police also found her phone and saw messages related to the supply of dangerous drugs.
As a result the Mackay mum of two spent 80 days in pre sentence custody but had since been on bail for about two years with no further offending and during which she had been working to rehabilitate herself including engaging Lives Lived Well and a number of clean drug screen tests.
Hennessy, now 30, pleaded guilty to trafficking.
She was jailed for 3.5 years, suspended after the 80 days which was declared as time already served.
The suspended sentence will hang over her head for four years. A conviction was recorded.
Bodhi Vincenzo Amendolia, 21
A Maroochydore man was in May granted immediate parole after a stolen car was found at his home during a search warrant by police.
Bodhi Vincenzo Amendolia told police a Subaru wagon, which was reported stolen from Varsity Lakes Tavern in 2024, was left at his Maroochydore home by a friend and he had no knowledge of its origin.
He was charged with numerous offences including unlawful possession of a motor vehicle, possessing dangerous drugs and utensils and authority required to possess explosives. He pleaded guilty in Maroochydore Magistrates Court to all charges.
Police prosecutor Brendan Newman said officers swooped on the Maroochydore home at 6.54pm on January 24 and scoured it.
Sergeant Newman said police uncovered marijuana in a black pouch, which the 21-year-old said he had a prescription card for, but placed the drug into his pouch from the container.
The court heard Amendolia told officers he had shotgun shells in a locked safe, with the 21-year-old telling officers he took them from a mate’s home because they “looked cool”.
Sergeant Newman said the most serious offences related to the Subaru wagon which was found in the garage with no registration plates.
Defence solicitor Rose Killip said it was a “de-escalation” of offending on his criminal history, which included a gun rampage in Buderim in late 2022 where he spent actual time behind bars.
Magistrate Rod Madsen acknowledged 21-year-old’s progress on his previous parole and opted to keep him in the community.
The Maroochydore man was jailed for 11 months but released on immediate parole.
Reece Rushton, 22
A Maroochydore man will be released from jail after threatening to stab a random mechanic after claiming he had been “disrespected”.
Maroochydore Magistrates Court heard in May of Reece Rushton’s bizarre threat to a worker at Quik Speed Automotive in Nambour on December 6 last year.
Police prosecutor Nick Nitschke told the court Rushton approached the staff member at the hinterland mechanic about 11am and spoke to him for an unknown reason until he said words to the effect of “I have a knife I’ll stab you c***”.
The business owner came out to assist his employee and told Rushton to leave however Sergeant Nitschke said when the 22-year-old left he disturbingly said “we shoot the big ones”.
Before leaving he pointed at one of the men with his left hand while having an unknown object in other hand, which they believed could have been a knife or a stick but were uncertain.
Police were called and found Rushton, a transient drug user, nearby where he told police the mechanic had “disrespected him” but could not explain why, among other incoherent statements.
He was granted bail on a public nuisance charge however failed to appear in court on January 8 this year.
He was arrested the following day with a kitchen knife in his backpack and spent 119 days in custody until his appearance in court, where he pleaded guilty to public nuisance, possessing a knife and failing to appear in court.
Magistrate Chris Callaghan sentenced Rushton to five months’ jail and immediately released him to parole.
Jessie James Hill, 24
A man who broke down the door of a Labrador home and attempted to enter the dwelling has been sentenced after he was identified by a tattoo on his leg.
Jessie James Hill, 24, pleaded guilty to one count of attempted enter dwelling with intent by break at night in company and one count of unlawful use of motor vehicle intended for indictable offence when he appeared in the Southport District Court on May 1.
The court heard Hill and three other males drove to a house in Labrador in a stolen Volkswagen around 12.30am on January 3, 2024.
The four males walked to the side gate of the home but ran back to the car when an alarm began to sound out.
Later, one of the men walked up to the steps of the front door and Hill kicked the front door open.
The noise woke up a person inside the house who yelled “get the f*** out of my house” three times.
Hill and the other male ran back to the car which drove off with all four males inside.
The court heard Hill was identified by a distinctive tattoo on his leg that was captured in CCTV footage. He was charged when he was arrested on other matters.
Judge Rowan Jackson sentenced Hill to a 15-month imprisonment with immediate release on parole.
Keeley Jade Holland, 27
An enrolled Gold Coast nurse who trafficked drugs for eight months says she turned her life around since a near-death gamma-hydroxybutyrate overdose.
Keeley Jade Holland, 27, appeared in the Brisbane Supreme Court on February 18, where she pleaded guilty to trafficking in dangerous drugs and possessing a mobile phone connected to trafficking, according to a recently published judgment by Justice Michael Copley.
Holland’s offending came to light when, on September 27, 2022, she was arrested at Surfers Paradise in relation to another matter where no charges were ultimately laid.
Police examined Holland’s mobile phone which indicated she had been trafficking in methamphetamine, cannabis, and GHB since January 19 of that year.
Analysis of her messages indicated she had supplied meth 16 times, offered to supply it five times, and did acts preparatory to a supply on 13 occasions, with fewer supplies of cannabis and GHB throughout the offending period.
Holland’s defence counsel submitted she trafficked solely to support her own addiction.
Justice Copley said society’s interests would best be served by allowing her to continue rehabilitation in the community.
He sentenced Holland to four years’ jail, wholly suspended for an operational period of four years, and placed her on three years’ probation.
In a statement, Holland said: “I’ve since turned my life around.”
Jwuan David Atama Eru-Guthrie, 22
An innocent stranger was the victim of a violent one punch attack in Far North Queensland at the hands of a Sunshine Coast roofer.
Jwuan David Atama Eru-Guthrie admitted in Maroochydore Magistrates Court in May to his violent conduct, which left his victim with bruising and swelling to his face, after he pleaded guilty to assault, commit public nuisance and contravening a police direction.
Police prosecutor Mark Burrell said Eru-Guthrie, who was listed as living in the Cairns suburb of Manoora, was in Cairns City about 10.45pm on September 7 last year when he was seen screaming and punching a phone booth.
Sergeant Burrell said the 22-year-old spotted the victim, who he did not know and just happened to be walking past, and challenged him to a brawl while swearing at him.
The man tried to talk Eru-Guthrie out of the fight by walking away however was pushed in the chest by the roofer before he was slogged in the face.
In a matter of weeks the Manoora man was seen causing a disturbance again, this time outside Gilligans Bar in Cairns City about 11pm on October 25.
The court was told the 22-year-old was seen on closed circuit television trying to start fights with people on the street.
Eru-Guthrie, who represented himself in court, said he left the Far North to get away from bad influences.
Magistrate Chris Callaghan placed Eru-Guthrie on a nine month jail term, which was suspended immediately for 12 months.
He must also pay $500 in compensation to the victim.
Wade Patrick Kavanagh, 27
A man whose robbery spree on the Gold Coast saw multiple people being threatened with a gun, and ended with him being bitten by a police dog, was sentenced.
Wade Patrick Kavanagh, 27, appeared in Southport District Court via videolink from custody on April 9 when he pleaded guilty to a raft of changes.
They included: two counts of burglary, one count of armed robbery with personal violence, two counts armed robbery and two counts of unlawful use of a motor vehicle to facilitate or commission of an indictable offence.
Judge Katarina Prskalo KC accepted Kavanagh was remorseful and had prospects of rehabilitation, sentencing him to eight years imprisonment.
However, taking into account time Kavanagh has already spent in pre-sentence custody, he will be eligible for parole on October 13.
The court heard Kavanagh’s string of offences began when he robbed the home of a man he knew on September 1, 2023.
Kavanagh arrived at the address with an associate waiting in a car for him before he took $650 cash, the homeowner’s phone and an electric bike charger from the property.
During the robbery, Kavanagh drew a handgun from his waistband, pointed it at the man and a tenant and said “Don’t think I won’t f**king shoot you, c**t”.
On a second occasion, Kavanagh produced a handgun from his tracksuit pants after asking a man at a Southport address for a glass of water on the evening on October 14, 2023.
Kavanagh did not know this man.
The court heard Kavanagh spent 543 days in pre-sentence custody for the offence, as well as other charges.
His defence barrister James Grehan, instructed by Hannay Lawyers, said circumstances led his client to go on this ‘bender’.
Zain Alec Christian, 29
A FIFO worker began his night on Flinders street but ended it in a padded call after smashing a bottle over someone’s head during a bar fight and kicking a police officer.
Zain Alec Christian appeared in Townsville Magistrate Court in May after he intentionally banged his head on a police can and made an officer fall over by lunging at him.
Police prosecutor John Moran said while drinking into the early hours of the morning at Flynn’s Irish Bar, CCTV captured the moment a violent brawl broke out.
A fight broke out and one of Christian’s friends restrained one of the men while Christian smashed a bottle over his head.
When the police found the 29-year-old they tried to issue him an infringement notice and a banning notice from Flinders street but failed after he persistently yelled “f*** you” aggressively at officers.
Mr Moran said the interaction escalated when the boilermaker was thrown into the back of a police car where he intentionally banged his head against the wall before he was put in handcuffs.
Christian was then transported to the Townsville watch house and during a procedural weapons search he lunged at a police officer which made him fall over.
Christian pleaded guilty to public nuisance, wilfully obstructing and assaulting a police officer.
He was sentenced to four months jail, wholly suspended for 12 months.
He was also ordered to complete 80 hours of community service within 12 months.
Jessey David, 27
A jilted man tied a woman’s wrists with a dress tie and proceeded to inflict a violent, horrifying assault on her – less than three months after he was released from prison.
Jessey David had been with the woman since 2020 and started the relationship while he was still inside jail, crown prosecutor Andrew Walklate said.
The now 27-year-old, appeared in Townsville District Court by video link in May as he was arrested after violently stalking and harassing the woman he had been dating.
Mr Walklate told the court the woman had tried to end the relationship at the end of a weeks-long tirade from the man and when she called it off he locked the bedroom door and turned on loud music before slapping her so hard she fell back.
Mr Walklate labelled the offending, “disturbing”.
To de-escalate the situation the woman agreed to forget about the break up until later in the day where she messaged and confirmed that it was over, and he wrote back threatening to end his life and called her a “useless hoe”.
The court was also told David tried to pressure the woman into dropping the charges by contacting his family members from inside prison to talk to her.
Mr Walklate said he was not long into the suspended sentence when he committed a violent robbery and was sentenced to five years, six months jail.
David pleaded guilty to deprivation of liberty, stalking with violence, common assault and attempting to pervert the course of justice.
He was sentenced to two years jail.
Judge Deborah Richards said it was “hard” to give a sentence that properly reflected the man’s offences, as he was still serving jail for the previous sentence and no time would be declared as already served.
He was given an immediate parole eligibility date.
Malachi Jordan Conway, 21
A recidivist offender who went on two crime sprees across half of Queensland scared one of his victim’s so much she wet herself, a court heard in April.
Malachi Jordan Conway, 21, carried out two armed robberies and three burglaries and thefts between Townsville and Gladstone in 2022 and 2023 on top of a violent attempted robbery at Allenstown in the Rockhampton region.
He was sentenced for 19 charges in Gladstone District Court in February 2024 and received a five-year prison term, suspended after serving six months, for an operational period of five years.
Recently however, he fronted Rockhampton District Court for the violent Allenstown attempted robbery which happened the day before he was arrested by police at the end of the 2023 crime spree.
Crown prosecutor Cameron Keast said the victim was loading her shopping in her car in the underground car park at Allenstown Shopping Centre on November 15, 2023, when Conway ran towards her and tried to grab her car keys.
Mr Keast said Conway wasn’t charged for this offence until February 2024.
Conway’s crime spree in 2023 started in Townsville, and he was apprehended at Toolooa, Gladstone, about 2.13am on November 16, 2023.
Mr Keast said Conway, after his release from prison from the 2024 sentence, went on to steal a mobility scooter from an 88-year-old man who parked it outside a coffee shop, and he was sentenced for it in March, 2025.
Conway pleaded guilty to one count of attempted robbery with violence and was sentenced to 141 days prison with 141 days presentence custody declared as time served and 117 undeclarable presentence custody taken into account.
The 12-months of the suspended sentence handed down in February 2024 was activated, leaving three and a half years remaining, and Conway was released immediately on parole.
*All cases are correct at time of publication but could be subject to appeal
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