Luke John Norris: Gold Coast parolee jailed for transporting more than half a kilo of meth
A Willow Vale man who was an parole for being found with more than half a kilo of meth and thousands in suspect cash has been jailed for a decade for again possessing commercial quantities of the hard drug.
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A Gold Coast man was on parole for possessing large quantities of methamphetamine and suspect cash when he agreed to courier more than half a kilogram of the drug in the Bundaberg region, a court has heard.
Willow Vale man Luke John Norris, 43, appeared in the Brisbane Supreme Court on Monday, June 2, where he pleaded guilty to possessing a schedule 1 dangerous drug in excess of 200g.
The offence was detected on August 11, 2023 at Gin Gin.
Crown prosecutor Gavin Webber told the court Norris was found in possession of 717g pure meth within 991g of substance contained inside an envelope tucked behind his driver’s seat.
An additional 3.7g of the drug was found in a clipseal bag inside the centre console, which was accepted to be for personal use.
Mr Webber told the court Norris was transporting the meth inside the envelope in return for a sum of money.
He has remained remanded in custody since his arrest.
Mr Webber described the bust as a “new record” for Norris, who had been sentenced in the Supreme Court of Queensland four times previously before the current matter.
Most seriously, on January 11, 2019, a search of Norris’ previous residence at Oxenford found him in possession of 651g pure meth, alongside $25,000 cash and other drug paraphernalia.
He was sentenced in the Brisbane Supreme Court on April 28, 2020, to 10 years’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to six charges, most seriously possessing a schedule 1 dangerous drug in excess of 200g (an allegation of trafficking in dangerous drugs was discontinued, although the court accepted on that previous occasion Norris’ possession was for a mixed commercial-personal purpose).
He was on parole for that previous offending when he committed the current offence.
As such, his parole was suspended, with his full-time release date not due to fall until January 10, 2029.
Defence counsel Scott Lynch told the court his client was a long-term meth addict who was dead to rights the moment cops pulled him over.
“When police pull him up, they can see he’s a user,” Mr Lynch said.
He added Norris had “sad and tragic” family circumstances, and desperately needed to engage in rehabilitation.
Justice Peter Callaghan told the court the amount of meth found in Norris’ possession was a “truly significant amount”.
“The people he was working for must have been running a highly commercial operation,” Justice Callaghan said.
He said drugs had ruined Norris’ life.
“The concern with a person like him is that he’s not going to have a life [outside of jail], he’ll be institutionalised, if he isn’t already,” Justice Callaghan said.
He sentenced Norris to 10 years and six months’ imprisonment, with parole eligibility set at August 10, 2026.
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Originally published as Luke John Norris: Gold Coast parolee jailed for transporting more than half a kilo of meth
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