Disqualified driver, Mathew Philip Longmore, on drugs four days before ramming truck, court told

A courier driver had been on drugs for four days before he tried to get away from police during a bizarre and dangerous driving episode through several Cairns suburbs in an old Subaru Outback.

Mathew Philip Longmore’s early model Subaru Outback on Sheridan St, Cairns North. Picture: QPS

A courier driver had been on drugs for four days before he tried to get away from police during a bizarre and dangerous driving episode through several Cairns suburbs in an old Subaru Outback, a court has heard.

Mathew Philip Longmore, 40, pleaded guilty in Cairns Magistrates Court to a raft of driving and traffic charges between September 27, 2024 and January 7, 2025 – the day he was arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated dangerous driving while adversely affected.

The court was told police noticed his erratic driving during the day of January 7, and his car tyres were deflated.

But didn’t stop.

Instead he continued driving through red lights at busy intersections, the wrong way down an off ramp, crossing four lanes of traffic on Ray Jones Drive, colliding with a truck, driving the wrong way down busy streets and ultimately fleeing after crashing his car into a metal fence.

Cairns Magistrate Leanne Scoines said Longmore was lucky not to have killed someone. Picture: Brendan Radke

The police picked him up a short time later, and tested him for drug driving when they noticed his demeanour and dilated pupils, the court was told.

Magistrate Leanne Scoines disqualified him from driving absolutely, and said he was lucky he didn’t kill someone.

“Your manner of driving was appalling and, unfortunately, not a one-off,” Ms Scoines said.

She said Longmore had been convicted of disqualified driving at least 10 times in Queensland since moving here in 2021.

He previously lived in Western Australia, where he clocked up 10 convictions for failing to stop, as well as being sentenced multiple times since 2005 for reckless driving, dangerous driving and aggravated reckless driving, the court was told.

“You had a blatant disregard for other road users on this day (January 7) … and I can only assume it was because of the vigilance of other road users that you didn’t kill someone else or yourself that day,” said Ms Scoines.

The court was told many people called triple-0 to report Longmore’s movements to police, and concerns about his driving.

Ms Scoines sentenced him to a head sentence of 20 months imprisonment, with a parole eligibility date of August 7, 2025.

Longmore also pleaded guilty to driving uninsured, unregistered, without number plates affixed, and two counts of disqualified driving.

Defence solicitor Nick Westcott said Longmore had a long history of drug use and driving offences, but now wanted to turn his life around to be a good father to his soon-to-be-born child.

He said Longmore accepted responsibility for his actions, was sorry, and had pleaded guilty as early as possible by way of remorse.

Originally published as Disqualified driver, Mathew Philip Longmore, on drugs four days before ramming truck, court told