The biggest stories from February 2021

Refresh your memories on all of the highs and lows to grace the front page of the Townsville Bulletin during the month of February.

FEBRUARY 1

CITY UNDER SIEGE

TOWNSVILLE police are questioning how effective government agencies are operating, as frustrations around the city’s out-of-control youth crime problem continue to fester.

Local police told the Townsville Bulletin the government and non government agencies weren’t pulling their weight when it came to addressing the underlying issues of young criminals.

The frustrations of the men and women walking the beat continues to grow as they feel the hard work they put into arresting and getting the criminals before the courts was being undone by these agencies.

They also pointed the finger at the courts, with frustrated officers continually arresting the same offenders time and again and in some cases over a decade, with young criminals graduating to serious adult offenders.

These concerns come just days after two police officers were injured in a serious crash while trying to keep the city safe.

FEBRUARY 2

BEYOND THE BAIL

JUST two months ago Thuringowa MP Aaron Harper was singing the praises of Labor’s “strengthened” bail laws, but his tune has changed and he is now calling for an “immediate review” of those laws.

In June, after the death of four children in a stolen car crash at Garbutt, the state government changed the language in the youth bail legislation.

The swapping of the word “may” for “must” was supposed to stop serious repeat offenders getting out.

In the past week, the shocking failures of those very laws have had horrific consequences, with the deaths of a Brisbane couple, hit and killed by an out of control stolen car, allegedly driven by a teen out on bail. Then three police officers were injured in Townsville, during an incident involving a stolen car, allegedly driven by a 14-year-old, also out on bail.

That prompted Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll to question the legislation and Mr Harper has now followed suit.

POLICE PRESSER

FEBRUARY 3

ANOTHER DAY IN CRIMSVILLE

HE number of young criminals fronting Townsville courts has risen sharply over the last five years, with the city recording the highest number of cases in regional Queensland.

Since 2016-17, there has been a 62 per cent increase in the number of defendants who have appeared in a local court, with a staggering 1370 defendants appearing before a magistrate or judge.

However the way the data is recorded, each appearance by repeat offenders is counted as a new defendant, which means there is no way to tell the actual number of children that appeared in the city’s courts from the Magistrate Court of Queensland Annual Report.

In 2018-19, there were fewer appearances with just 1095 youth defendants in Townsville courts. This is an increase of 275 appearances.

In the last year, Townsville’s courts have seen more young defendants than Beenleigh (1266), Southport (1172), Maroochydore (663), Caboolture (414), Ipswich (994), Cairns (1303) and Mackay (222).

POLICE PRESSER

FEBRUARY 4

COURT HOUSE RUCKUS

A BLATANT disregard for the law was on show as teens waiting for their court matters smoked, socialised and stormed out of the Townsville Courthouse on Wednesday.

“I don’t give a f--k about the bail,” a teenage girl waiting to regain her freedom said.

The girl, who had appeared in the Townsville children’s court, aggressively let out her frustration before storming out after becoming impatient waiting to sign her bail forms.

Exasperated court staff were forced to search for the girl as well as a handful of other children who left the waiting area before signing their forms, something that is legally required before they are allowed to go at large in the community.

One boy, who attended court alongside a family member loudly bounced between groups of children holding court with other accused offenders about Cleveland Youth Detention Centre, the mood of the magistrate and his mother recently being sentenced to three years’ jail. At one stage an adult went up to the boy and told him not to worry about ending up behind bars and described the conditions at Cleveland as “like a holiday”.

FEBRUARY 5

COVID SCARE

POTENTIAL coronavirus case had Townsville on high alert yesterday as the city waited for the official ruling.

A man who had travelled to Townsville from South Africa, via quarantine in Perth, had returned a “weak positive” result for COVID-19 but was asymptomatic.

Police, ambulance and Queensland Health workers attended the man’s house on Wednesday night and took him to Townsville University Hospital.

He was still in the COVID-19 isolation ward late yesterday afternoon.

Queensland Health was ready to jump into action to track down every known contact but Townsville dodged a bullet after he tested negative yesterday afternoon.

Queensland Health confirmed it was now classed as a historical case.

A source said the man had arrived back in North Queensland between January 30 and 31.

When a security guard at Four Points by Sheraton in Perth tested positive to the UK variant B117, he got a COVID-19 test to be safe. The security guard case forced parts of Perth into a hard five-day lockdown.

The man, now in Townsville, had stayed at Four Points just before the guard’s positive result was revealed.

FEBRUARY 6

TUMOUR BUNGLE

A CHARTERS Towers mother whose life was turned upside down when she was diagnosed with a rare brain tumour is suing the Townsville Hospital and Health Service for more than a million dollars.

Lynette Bowden filed the medical negligence claim in the Townsville Supreme Court in December alleging that despite multiple visits to hospitals over a number of years, doctors missed the signs of a serious tumour that impacted her vision and speech.

In 2017, she attended Mount Isa Hospital, which falls outside of Townsville’s health service, complaining of issues with her right ear, including hearing loss, ongoing pain, infection and tinnitus.

The lawsuit claimed a CAT scan taken at the time found abnormalities in parts of her skull, in the sphenoid and orbit bones, and that a handwritten report from the doctor noted the results were not mentioned or discussed as the abnormalities were in a different area to the symptoms and it was concluded that no follow-up was required.

FEBRUARY 8

NO WORDS

SHE was young, full of adventure, and with a whole life ahead of her before Jennifer Board’s future was taken away in an instant.

All her dreams to be a police officer, her treks in North Queensland waterfalls and adventures on a brand new motorcycle are no longer.

The 22-year-old was killed while riding her new bike when she and a Holden Statesman collided in Ross River Road.

Ms Board’s older sister, Siana Board, said the “beautiful, kind” woman was the last person in the world to deserve this fate.

“Jennifer has never hurt a single person in this life,” she said. “She really, really was the most genuine soul.”

The sisters grew up on an Ingham cane farm with their parents and had been inseparable ever since.

The duo were each other’s best friends and loved exploring North Queensland’s waterfalls together.

FEBRUARY 9

‘VIGILANTE’ UP FOR MURDER

AN ALLEGED youth crime vigilante accused of driving the car that hit and killed 22-year-old aspiring policewoman Jennifer Board in an horrific Townsville crash has been charged with murder.

The 25-year-old Douglas man was taken into police custody, accused of being behind the wheel of a Holden Statesman on Friday night that police allege was chasing a stolen Hyundai through Townsville when the tragedy unfolded.

The driver of the allegedly stolen Hyundai, 18-year-old Gregory Clubb, was also arrested after allegedly going on a crime spree to Cairns and back following the crash.

The Statesman collided with the rear of the stolen car, crossed on to the wrong side of the road and hit Ms Board, 22, as she was riding her motorcycle.

FEBRUARY 10

FIGHT CLUBB

A BAIL application has descended into chaos as friends, family and the accused shouted across a Townsville courtroom.

The 18-year-old man accused of being behind the wheel of a stolen car that was rammed by a group of vigilantes in the fatal crash that claimed the life of 22-year-old Jennifer Board was refused bail after he launched into a foul-mouthed tirade aimed at the magistrate and prosecutors.

Gregory Clubb interrupted his own court proceedings and called Magistrate Viviana Keegan a “c--t”.

He levelled similar insults as the matter continued, calling Ms Keegan a “c--khead” and threatening to bash her.

Mr Clubb was arrested and charged with seven counts of unlawful use of a motor vehicle, three counts each of burglary and stealing, two counts of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, one count of attempted burglary and breaching bail.

FEBRUARY 11

MAGISTRATE COPS ANOTHER SPRAY

ONE of the children accused of breaking into the home of Jennifer Board just days after she was killed called a magistrate a “dumb c-nt” as he was denied bail.

Police were forced to restrain the 15-year-old boy as he screamed, stomped his feet and threw his body and fists against the glass dock after Magistrate Viviana Keegan told him he would remain in custody.

“I just want to go home,” the boy said, his voice breaking as he wiped tears from his eyes.

“I’ve been in the watch house for over 24 hours. I want to go home.

“It is not even my fault sir. If they want to leave their f-cking door unlocked.”

Even after he was removed from the courtroom the boy could be heard yelling obscenities and causing loud thuds as he was taken back to the watch house.

He was charged with a string of eight dishonesty and drug offences including burglary, stealing and possessing marijuana.

FEBRUARY 12

DUDE, WHERE’S MY CRIM

A SHORTAGE of GPS trackers could give hardcore teen criminals free rein through the city after a major bungle in the state government’s new youth crime plan.

The Townsville Bulletin can confirm there are no GPS trackers housed in Townsville, despite the government announcing implementation of the devices as part of its seven-pronged youth crime plan.

The Bulletin also understands that it takes multiple days for the trackers to arrive in the region from Brisbane, allowing the recidivist offenders days of free rein to potentially commit more crime.

On Tuesday, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the GPS tracker trial would be rolled out across Moreton, north Brisbane, Logan, Gold Coast and Townsville.

Currently, GPS trackers are used on high-risk adult offenders, including sex offenders and terrorists.

It is understood that each individual device needs to be shipped from the southeast after an offender is ordered to wear one.

FEBRUARY 13

CROC ATTACK FEARS

THE identity of a man police are searching for in crocodile-infested waters north of Townsville has been revealed.

Andrew Heard went fishing in Gayundah Creek, northwest of Hinchinbrook Island, about 3pm on Thursday and was expected back an hour later.

Mr Heard’s wife Erica contacted police about 8.30pm when he failed to return and could not be reached by radio.

Police conducted a search on Thursday night and found the 69-year-old’s upturned 2m boat about 2.30am on Friday.

Wildlife officers and the Queensland State Emergency Service are working with police to find Mr Heard.

Two wildlife teams were deployed to the area on Friday, with further resources due to be sent.

“Departmental experts on the ground have examined the vessel and determined that it is highly likely that a crocodile is involved, however the exact circumstances and sequence of events remain unknown,” a statement from the Department of Environment and Science read.

FEBRUARY 15

JOBS BOOST

THE prospects for generating more jobs and wealth in North Queensland are good, despite the impact of COVID-19 and continuing challenges of severe unemployment, a report shows.

The Townsville and North West Queensland Economic Outlook is a new quarterly report published by the development committee for the area in association with economic consultancy Regional Economic Advisory.

It found the region from Townsville to Mount Isa, including the Gulf of Carpentaria, generated $16.9bn worth of goods and services in 2018-19, a 1.1 per cent fall on the previous year.

But while some areas, like Cloncurry with a jobless rate of 5 per cent, are performing well, Palm Island is in terrible shape with an unemployment rate of 54.9 per cent.

Burke, Doomadgee, Mornington and Carpentaria all had jobless rates above 22 per cent.

FEBRUARY 16

DAD ON KILL CHARGE

ALMOST a decade after turning off his infant son’s life support, a Townsville father pleaded not guilty to the death for the second time.

Matthew Riley Baxter came into this world a few days early on September 24, 2011, weighing 2.9kg.

At six weeks old, he was rushed to hospital unresponsive and three days later the sweet baby with the mop of black hair died.

His father, Nicholas Aaron Baxter, was acquitted of his murder but convicted and jailed in 2017 after a jury found him guilty of manslaughter. This conviction was overturned on appeal.

His second trial, which began yesterday in the Townsville Supreme Court, will be decided by a judge sitting alone.

FEBRUARY 17

COBALT JOLT

A COMPANY proposing a $550m Townsville energy chemicals hub has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Port of Townsville, showing its project could be more than doubled in size.

ASX-listed Queensland Pacific Metals announced the agreement yesterday as it seeks to secure sufficient capacity at the port to import and export its products.

QPM wants to import nickel ore from New Caledonia to produce nickel-cobalt mixed hydroxide precipitate, nickel and cobalt sulfates, hematite iron ore, high-purity alumina and magnesia.

It has selected a site for its proposed refining hub at Townsville City Council’s Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct, about 40km southwest of the city.

Under its MOU with the port, QPM is seeking to import up to 1.5m (wet) tonnes of ore a year and export up to 500,000 tonnes of hematite, up to 62,000 tonnes of battery chemical products and up to 40,000 tonnes of magnesia.

FEBRUARY 18

DISGRACEFUL UNION SLUGGED

THE CFMMEU and numerous employees have been slapped with massive fines for unlawful action during the construction of Queensland Country Bank Stadium where they called the director of a subcontractor a “f---ing dog” and “a piece of sh-t”.

The Federal Court penalised the CFMMEU $190,000 and its official Grant Harradine $20,000 for organising unlawful industrial action against a local subcontractor from March 11-14, 2019 during construction of the $293m stadium.

Mr Harradine organised an unlawful ban that involved workers refusing to work as part of a campaign to coerce the subcontractor to make a building enterprise agreement with the CFMMEU.

The court also found 16 employees of the subcontractor took part in the unlawful industrial action resulting in the subcontractor being unable to perform any work on the project for three days.

Eleven employees were penalised $5000 while a further five employees were penalised $4500 for their part in the unlawful industrial action. Total penalties imposed on the employees was $77,500.

Facebook Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP)

FEBRUARY 19

UNFRIENDED

FACEBOOK’S war on Australians may continue for at least another week despite urgent calls for the company to restore access to vital public safety information, charities, support groups and small businesses on its social network.

The warning comes after the multibillion-dollar tech giant blindsided the federal government, holding talks with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, while at the same time stripping access to news and other vital information from its 17 million Australian users.

Charities and support services including Bowel Cancer Australia, RACQ LifeFlight, and the Domestic Violence Prevention Centre remained unavailable throughout the day after Facebook began removing “a broad definition” of news content to protest laws that would force it to pay for the news it uses.

FEBRUARY 20

STAR STRUCK

THEY are two of the Cowboys’ brightest young prospects, but this weekend Reuben Cotter and Daejarn Asi will stand on opposite sides of the Queensland Country Bank Stadium turf.

Cotter will run out at dummy-half for the Indigenous All Stars while 20-year-old Asi was a late call-up into the Maori camp last weekend.

DAEJARN ASI SET-UP PIC FOR ALL STARS

The week in All Stars camp has been a steep learning curve for both young players, but most of that learning has been done off the field.

Asi, who grew up on the New Zealand South Island in Christchurch, moved to Australia when he was only 10 years old to join renowned rugby union nursery Brisbane Grammar.

It meant the fleet-footed Kiwi had missed out on a lot of the cultural lessons handed down to young Maoris.

That is where the camp in Townsville has been an eye-opener, with tribal chiefs helping drive home the history and traditions of one of the planet’s oldest cultures.

FEBRUARY 22

YOUNG LIFE LOST

BYRON Farnell’s young life was taken too soon. But it was a life lived at full throttle.

The 19-year-old Cranbrook man died after a serious motorcycle crash in Douglas.

He is being remembered as a supportive mate and avid motorcyclist.

Police say Byron and a friend were travelling along Riverside Boulevard with Byron on the bike and his friend in pillion position.

The bike left the road and collided with a tree.

Paramedics fought to save the 19-year-old’s life as he was rushed to the emergency department but he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the hospital.

The pillion rider, 19, was also taken to hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries.

A bouquet of flowers, a scarred tree and crime scene markings are all that remain at the scene of the crash.

FEBRUARY 23

TICKET TAKE PARADE

EIGHT thousand people were be able to attend Townsville Anzac Day commemorations this year, but it was ticketed to prioritise ex-servicemen, families, RSL members and support organisations.

The city’s two RSL sub branches, Townsville and Thuringowa, announced the Dawn Service will take place at Riverway.

The two branches worked with Townsville City Council and other groups to make sure the 2021 service went ahead.

In 2020 Anzac Day was cancelled across the country as it battled coronavirus.

Townsville RSL sub-branch president Bill Whitburn OAM said cities and towns across Australia were changing long-held Anzac Day traditions in response to the pandemic.

“Thankfully, restrictions on large gatherings have eased and the rollout of the COVID vaccine has started. However, we are still required to ensure events comply with COVID-Safe requirements set by the chief health officer,” he said.

FEBRUARY 24

HIGHWAY TRAGEDY

A FAMILY was ripped apart after the tragic death of a mother and her daughter in a horrific crash west of Townsville.

A 49-year-old Garbutt woman and her eight-year-old daughter were travelling in a Holden Barina on the Flinders Highway when the car veered on to the wrong side of the road about 7.10am.

Their car hit a semi-trailer travelling north, and was forced down an embankment into bushland.

The woman and her young daughter could not be saved.

The truck driver was flown to Townsville University Hospital with leg injuries.

Country Patrol Group Inspector Damien Irvine said police didn’t know how the car came into the truck’s path, but said the forensic crash unit was investigating every angle.

FEBRUARY 25

POWER SHIFT PUTS NORTH IN SPOTLIGHT

BEING Bob Katter became a whole lot more important.

The resignation of controversial backbencher Craig Kelly from the Liberal Party cut the Coalition’s majority in government to a single vote.

This means the vote of Mr Katter, the federal Member for Kennedy, is more important than ever.

The long-serving politician has already laid his demands on the table in exchange for his support for Prime Minister Scott Morrison. But he says the support is for the Prime Minister, not the Liberal Party.

Mr Katter will use his new power to ensure CopperString 2.0 and Hells Gates Dam go ahead as they should.

“My first move was defence … I wanted to secure those projects,” the Kennedy MP said.

FEBRUARY 26

LAST KISS

GRAB your face paint, leather and platform shoes because Townsville is hosting legendary American rock band KISS.

KISS have announced the farewell tour, originally cancelled due to illness in 2019, will now return to Australia in 2022.

Regarded as one of the most influential bands of all time, KISS is also one of the world’s best-selling bands with more than 75 million records sold worldwide.

Since rising to prominence in the 70s, KISS has maintained a reputation as a crowd-pleasing live act thanks to their distinctive costumes, make-up, fire breathing, smoking guitars, shooting rockets, levitating drum kits, and pyrotechnics.

Their legendary rock star shenanigans will be on full display at Townsville’s Queensland Country Bank Stadium.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the blockbuster fixture will generate millions of dollars for local businesses and support local jobs.

“Townsville – get ready to rock and roll all night,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

FEBRUARY 27

PREDATOR AT THE PULPIT

“THEY knew and they did nothing. The Catholic Church knew about what happened to me. I was 11 years old, I told them and they did nothing.”

The woman was your typical 11-year-old Mount Isa girl. She loved Irish dancing, softball, swimming and playing the piano and was surrounded with friends.

She was a happy girl, bright and bubbly, someone who had lofty plans for her life, the kind of plans only a pre-teen, who isn’t wise to the world around them, can have.

She looks back at that time in her life with a deep sadness. She imagines a life of endless opportunity, one of what could have been. The possibilities were endless.

But this life would never eventuate. Her world would be torn apart by a predator who had her in his sights. By a man she should have been able to trust.

Originally published as The biggest stories from February 2021