Revealed: 2021-22 drink-driving numbers for Mackay, Isaac, Whitsundays
Drink and drug-driving is on the rise as police plead with Mackay Isaac and Whitsunday communities to drive safely. We reveal the drivers behind the figures, and the worst spots. SEE THE FULL LIST
Mackay
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Frustrated police have busted more than 1500 hundred drink-drivers across Mackay Isaac Whitsunday in less than 12 months, in a period labelled the worst for fatal crashes in the district in five years.
Between July 1 and May 30, at least 1599 drivers have been issued a notice to appear in court for driving while over the blood alcohol limit – of those 891 were in Mackay, 531 in Whitsunday and 177 in Isaac.
And with the number of road tragedies in the Mackay region linked to drink-driving, police are concerned.
These latest figures are just slightly lower than the 1694 drink-driving reported between July 1, 2020 and June 30, 2021.
Police data revealed this was a jump from the 1426 in the 12 months before.
District Crime Prevention Co-ordinator Sergeant Nigel Dalton said the presence of alcohol and drugs were often a key element of fatal crashes.
“We see a high level of those crashes have got a drink and drug driving factor and all of them fit within those fatal five behaviours,” he said.
Mackay:
The Fatal Five are well known – failing to wear seatbelts, drink and drug driving, distraction, speed and fatigue.
“If we could stop those five behaviours, we could really reduce the number of serious crashes and fatals,” Sergeant Dalton said.
“It’s not us doing the stopping, it’s the drivers of our vehicles who need to do that.
“We can’t be everywhere.”
Whitsundays:
Sergeant Dalton said while fatal crashes more often happened on major highways, they could occur on any street.
“If we knew where the fatal crashes or serious crashes were going to happen, we would be there,” he said.
“It really does shock me when I see a fatal crash report come in.
“More often than not, I’m going, ‘wow, I did not think one would happen there’.”
To gain to control over dangerous driving, Mackay Acting Inspector Anthony Cowan said the police had ramped up patrols and random breath tests in recent months.
“We’ve done so many extra patrols,” he said following a fatal crash at Blacks Beach in May.
“We’ve done thousands of extra RBTs.
“I’m not sure how to get the message through.”
Isaac:
Suburban breakdown
This publication’s court reporting across Mackay Isaac and Whitsunday reveals where police have busted drink and drug- drivers from June 2021 until now.
Sarina – 17
Bowen – 11
Airlie Beach – 10
Mackay – 8
South Mackay – 7
Moranbah – 7
West Mackay – 6
North Mackay – 5
Jubilee Pocket – 5
Andergrove – 4
Beaconsfield – 4
Cannonvale – 4
Proserpine – 4
Blacks Beach – 4
Slade Point – 3
Mount Pleasant – 3
Walkerston – 2
Marian – 2
Rural View – 2
Middlemount – 1
Hamilton Island – 1
Rural View – 1
Richmond – 1
Eimeo – 1
Ooralea – 1
Farleigh – 1
Nebo – 1
Shoal Point – 1
Mirani – 1
The Leap – 1
Hay Point – 1
Eimeo – 1
Gumlu – 1
Paget – 1
Collinsville – 1
Note: This only represents the cases reported on and some suburbs and towns might show higher numbers because of their position in the region and specific road layout rather than any excess propensity to drink and drug-driving.
Here are a number of cases reported on in the past 12 months:
High range drink driving
James Wagner Hillery
The 65 year old wrote off a $60,000 LandCruiser in an early-evening crash on Edgerton Rd, Bowen when he was more than four times the legal blood alcohol limit.
Bowen Magistrates Court heard Hillery downed 14 Great Northern beers in the lead up to the December 2021 single-vehicle rollover, pushing his blood alcohol concentration up to 0.222.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Emma Myors said emergency services removed Hillery from his upturned vehicle about 6pm on Thursday, December 16, and paramedics cleared him as stable.
Magistrate James Morton said there was “no excuse” for Hillery’s decision to drive while “heavily under the influence”, telling him: “You shouldn’t have been anywhere near a vehicle.”
Mr Morton sentenced Hillery to pay a $1500 fine and disqualified his licence for 12 months, with a conviction recorded.
Matthew John Cunnington
Cunnington blew nearly five times the limit when police pulled him over in Mackay.
Mackay Magistrates Court on October 12, 2021, heard the 33-year-old father was a co-director of a major construction and resources company in the Bowen Basin with offices in Gladstone and Mackay, and almost 400 employees.
The court heard Matthew John Cunnington had been based in Brisbane when he took a flight to Gladstone on September 14, 2021 picking up a company car for the final leg to Mackay.
The trip had been organised so Cunnington could attend a business meeting, which was initially planned to take place at a commercial premise in Paget.
Cunnington’s lawyer Marcus Hahn said the director was en route to the venue when his clients called telling him they were not on site and asked to move the meeting to a different location, the Hay Point Hotel.
Cunnington, a self-confessed alcoholic, conceded and met his clients at the pub for lunch where he later “drank to excess”, drinking 11 beverages comprising of vodka orange drinks and “schooners of whatever was on tap”.
After the lunchtime meeting, Cunnington drove to Mackay where police pulled him over on Paradise St about 6pm.
He was breathalysed and returned a 0.24 per cent blood alcohol concentration.
“You were nearly five times the limit,” Magistrate Athol Kennedy said to Cunnington.
“Anyone on the road that day would have been in great danger.”
Mr Kennedy asked Cunnington how he would be able to refrain from alcohol in the future after his recent relapse.
Cunnington said his wife was a former policewoman who was now being very “strict” with him.
He also said his mistake had “shook him to the core” and he had not touched alcohol since.
Cunnington was disqualified from driving for 12 months and placed on probation for a year.
A conviction was recorded.
Petrus Maria Ryke
Ryke was hit with a two-year driving ban and must pay a $2000 fine after crashing while five times the legal alcohol limit.
He returned a 0.253 per cent blood alcohol reading.
Mackay Magistrates Court heard after Ryke crashed his 2015 Honda motorbike was left on the roadside and stolen.
Police were called to a single-vehicle crash on Evans St about 1.30am on March 19, 2022 – paramedics were already assessing Ryke and fire crews were also on scene.
The 57 year old told police he had been drinking earlier that night at Langfords Hotel.
An ambulance took him to Mackay Base Hospital and a blood sample was taken which revealed a 0.253 per cent reading.
Ryke pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor or a drug.
A conviction was recorded.
Renee Lee Burke
Police stopped Renee Lee Burke on April 22, 2022 at 1.10am on Juliet St and she returned a positive reading.
Mackay Magistrates Court heard further analysis revealed her reading was 0.227 per cent, four and a half times the legal limit.
Self represented, Burke pleaded guilty to high-range drink-driving.
The court heard it was not the first time she had been busted for this charge – in 2018 she also returned a 0.247 per cent blood alcohol reading and as a result was disqualified from driving for 18 months.
“It suggests to me you … you might need some with alcohol. Is alcohol an issue for you?” Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan asked.
Burke, 37, said “yes”, adding in 2019 she went through a residential rehabilitation program.
She was placed on 12 months probation and disqualified from driving for 12 months. A conviction was recorded.
Peter Kazakoff
Police pulled Peter Kazakoff over at 5.15pm on January 22, 2022 on Illawong Drive for an RBT, where he blew 0.160.
Kazakoff pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on March 28 to drink-driving.
“I’m extremely remorseful for my actions, I understand having a licence is a privilege and I’ve abused that rule, I’ve put myself and the community in danger and I apologise for wasting your time,” Kazakoff said.
But Magistrate Damien Dwyer pointed to Kazakoff’s driving history and questioned the groundskeeper’s sincerity.
Kazakoff was disqualified from driving for 12 months and fined $1100.
A conviction was recorded.
Jeremiah Thomas Anu
Jeremiah Thomas Anu was sitting in the driver’s seat of an idling car on Herbert St, Bowen, at 1.24am on Sunday, March 6, 2022, and given a roadside breath test.
The 28 year old later blew 0.154 BAC and told police he had no reason for driving but he was excited his mates were in town.
An operator at Byerwen Mine, Anu told Magistrate James Morton he took the car because he needed a lift to get more drinks.
Anu pleaded guilty to driving under the influence and was fined $800 and his licence disqualified for 10 months.
“Had you been driving the car, it would have been 12 to 15 months disqualification,” Mr Morton said.
A conviction was recorded.
Michael Joseph Gordon
Gordon told police he had drank six mid strength beers in eight hours when he was stopped about 1.50am on October 30, 2021.
Police had been patrolling Glenella Connection Rd and spotted a vehicle travelling at speed before overtaking a ute and turning onto Heaths Road at Mount Pleasant.
Gordon, 20, returned a positive roadside reading and later results revealed he had a 0.192 per cent blood alcohol concentration.
The court heard he had just finished a 12-hour work swing and had been taking his former girlfriend home as she had lost her licence.
He pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court to driving under the influence of liquor.
Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan said it was “very dangerous to drive at that level” and he should have told his former girlfriend no, but accepted he was “otherwise very responsible”.
Gordon was fined $1200 and disqualified from driving for eight months.
A conviction was recorded.
Kristyne Mary Sarah McLean
Police first came across Kristyne Mary Sarah McLean on Petrie St on November 3, 2021 slumped in the driver’s seat with multiple cans of premixed alcohol strewn throughout the parked car including an open can in the centre console.
Her blood alcohol reading was 0.180 per cent.
Then on November 6 following another incident McLean had been spotted driving and there were a number of beer cans in the car.
Her reading was 0.216 per cent.
McLean pleaded guilty to two counts of being under the influence of liquor.
Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan said McLean’s licence had been banned following the first high-range drink-driving incident but she was not charged with that offence.
“Taking to the road when you were this drunk is absolutely reprehensible and you need to stop,” Ms Hartigan told the former Red Rooster worker.
McLean was placed on 12 months probation and disqualified from driving for 27 months.
Convictions were recorded.
Peter John Wann
The 49-year-old mine operator boasted he had “been drink driving for 10 years and only caught twice” and threatened to “flog the f--k” out of police after they caught him driving under the influence of liquor on October 6, 2021.
Bowen Magistrates Court heard Wann blew 0.168 after police pulled him over for an expired vehicle registration on his way home from Bowen Woolworths.
He told police he had consumed an entire bottle of Johnnie Walker whisky, then went on to tell them they were “only revenue raising” and he would find them at the pub and fight them as he had “done nothing wrong”.
Wann told the court he was “usually a pretty placid fellow” but said a young police officer at the station “deliberately stirred [him] up to say those words”.
He pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor, driving an uninsured vehicle, driving with a cancelled, lost, stolen, destroyed or damaged number plate and driving an unregistered vehicle.
Magistrate James Morton disqualified his licence for nine months and ordered he pay $1744 in fines, with convictions recorded.
Royce Thomas Edison Riggs
Riggs was told he was lucky there wasn’t a more “dire outcome” after he blew almost five times the legal blood alcohol limit on a Macca’s run.
And it was the 48 year old’s seventh drink-driving charge.
Riggs had a 0.241 per cent reading when he was stopped on the Cunningham Highway just after 1.30am on September 19, 2021.
Moranbah Magistrates Court heard he told police he had a few drinks at home and was on his way to the fast food outlet.
Riggs has previously received jail terms for his drink-driving conduct which included two high reading charges in 2009 of 0.279 and 0.154 per cent respectively.
“The battle you have with alcohol continues,” Magistrate Rosemary Gilbert said.
Solicitor Sam Foster, of C Guilfoyle and Associates, said his client had taken a number of steps since the latest incident including attending ATODS and completing the Queensland Traffic Offenders Program, pushing for a large fine and 12 months licence ban.
He pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor.
Riggs was placed on 18 months probation and disqualified from driving for 15 months.
A conviction was recorded.
Sarah-May Armstrong
Sarina Magistrates Court heard Sarah-May Armstrong blew a 0.2 BAC an hour after police first arrived at a Sarina crash scene about 1.30pm on November 27.
Prosecutor David Epstein said Armstrong was the driver and sole occupant of the car with paramedics also called to the scene.
Duty lawyer Kenneth Seaniger said Armstrong had worked as a live-in full time bar assistant for two years at Bakers Creek Tavern.
“She tells me that immediately before this particular incident, she had a relationship breakdown,” Mr Seaniger said.
Armstrong pleaded guilty to driving while under the influence of liquor.
Magistrate Bronwyn Hartigan said this was Armstrong’s third drink or drug drive offence in two years.
“You’re a danger to yourself and the public … you’re getting to a point where imprisonment can be imposed,” Ms Hartigan told her.
Armstrong was fined $1500 and disqualified from driving for 12 months.
A conviction was recorded.
David Leslie Webster
Underground miner David Leslie Webster was stopped on Glenpark St on November 18, 2021 and blew a blood alcohol reading of 0.171 per cent.
Mackay Magistrates Court heard the 44 year old had finished a 12-hour shift at 6am that day, slept from 2pm to 5pm before going to a friend’s house where he drank bourbon and rum intending to stay the night.
The court heard he was unable to sleep and had a few more drinks before he made the “very foolish” decision to drive home and get food.
Webster lost his job over his conduct.
He pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor, was fined $1000 and his licence was disqualified for seven months.
A conviction was recorded.
Stephen Grant Schackell
About 11pm on October 6, 2021 police spotted a car struggling to stay within the lane as it travelled on Moranbah Access Rd.
Moranbah Magistrates Court heard the vehicle registration was also six days expired.
Stephen Grant Schackell told police he’d had about six drinks including rum and beer – his blood alcohol reading was 0.187 per cent.
The court heard he had been driving a work car and had since lost his job.
Pleading guilty to driving under the influence of liquor, Schackell told the court it was a “stupid” decision.
He was fined $700 and disqualified from driving for six months.
A conviction was recorded.
James Mikaara Daniels
Daniels told Proserpine Magistrates Court “really bad asthma” was the reason he refused multiple requests for a breath test when caught drink-driving on December 21, 2021.
The court heard Daniels had a 0.173 per cent blood alcohol concentrate when he had a roadside test on Waterson Way, Airlie Beach about 11.25pm, after refusing three times.
He then refused multiple requests to provide a further breath sample at the Cannonvale police station.
Daniels pleaded guilty to failing to provide a specimen of breath for analysis, telling the court he had a couple of knock off drinks at work and a few more beers at home with his flatmate before heading out to get something to eat.
Magistrate James Morton fined him $900 and disqualified his licence for nine months, with a conviction recorded.
Zayd Peters
Peters was fleeing an altercation with his landlord when police busted him driving on Jubilee Pocket Rd, Jubilee Pocket with a 0.180 BAC.
Proserpine Magistrates Court heard Peters and the man had been drinking beer and bourbon “heavily” on the night of October 8 and had been on good terms until they got into an argument over the man’s girlfriend.
The court heard Peters decided to drive to a nearby friend’s house about 11pm because he feared the altercation would turn physical.
Police pulled him over because he was driving with his headlights on high-beam.
He pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of liquor.
Magistrate James Morton said Peters “could’ve walked or run” to get away instead of driving.
He noted Peters had a recent two-year licence disqualification in his traffic history.
The sentence was a $1500 fine and a 12-month licence disqualification, with a conviction recorded.
Mid-range drink-driving
Mitchel Brody Braak
Mitchel Brody Braak returned a positive reading of more than twice the legal limit.
Mackay Magistrates Court heard it was about 1.35am when he was pulled over on Mackay Bucasia Rd, Andergrove on March 20, 2022.
The 22 year old told officers he had had about four to five heavy beers.
His blood alcohol reading was 0.110 per cent.
The court heard he admitted he should not have been driving.
Self represented, Braak pleaded guilty to mid range drink-driving.
He was fined $600 and disqualified for three months.
A conviction was recorded.
Mark John Gralow
Police were called to a traffic incident on Bannister St, North Mackay, about 3.50pm on August 25, 2021.
Mackay Magistrates Court heard Mark John Gralow had been driving a vehicle which struck another man – his brother – in a minor incident that required treatment at hospital.
Prosecutor Sheena Gravino told the court Gralow admitted to being the driver of the car, and witnesses reported hearing Gralow and another man yelling moments before the incident.
Paramedics treated the second man for minor cuts and bruises, took him to hospital from where he later discharged himself.
Gralow was breath tested and returned a 0.129 per cent reading at the station.
He pleaded guilty to drink-driving and driving without due care and attention.
Gralow’s solicitor Steven Hayles said his client was remorseful for what happened that day, but he had never intended to drive.
Magistrate Robert Turra fined Gralow $1000 for the drink-drive charge and disqualified his licence for nine months.
Gralow was fined $200 for driving without due care.
Convictions were recorded.
He was fined $1000 and disqualified for nine months for the drink-drive charge.
Convictions were recorded.
Dillon Jared Alderton
Alderton decided to drive home and keep drinking with friends when he was intercepted for a random breath test.
Dillon Jared Alderton, 24, had pulled his green sedan into a driveway on Bridge Rd when police pulled up about 9pm on February 19.
Alderton told police he had drunk a few beers earlier in the night, since about 4pm or 5pm.
Prosecutor Sheena Gravino told Mackay Magistrates Court Alderton told police he had decided to drive home, and that he had never held a licence.
Alderton later blew a 0.139 BAC and checks confirmed his admission to police.
He pleaded guilty to drink-driving and driving without a licence having never held one.
Magistrate Robert Turra fined Alderton $900 for drink-driving and disqualified him for seven months.
For unlicensed driving, Alderton was fined $600 and disqualified for three months.
Convictions were recorded.
Nicholas Thomas Mason
Mason was searching for his partner when police busted him driving on Loop Rd, Jubilee Pocket with a 0.136 BAC on November 26, 2021.
The father of two pleaded guilty to driving a motor vehicle while over the middle alcohol limit while on a provisional licence.
He told Proserpine Magistrates Court he had drunk about 15 Great Northern stubbies at a Christmas party, which his partner also attended, before taking a taxi home.
He said he drove back to the party location later looking for his partner as he had concerns she was going to harm herself as she had bipolar disorder and alcohol “didn’t mix very well” with it.
Magistrate James Morton noted Mason had appeared in court in 2021 on a drink-driving charge that resulted in a six-month licence disqualification.
The sentence this time was a $900 fine and an eight-month licence disqualification, with a conviction recorded.
Shiral Monique Harbot
The mother of four had a 0.127 BAC after crashing her Commodore into a tree on Quay St, Bowen on November 17, 2021.
Bowen Magistrates Court heard her then partner told police Harbot was “maggoted” when she drove from their home towards Front Beach that night.
Police witnessed her take off at speed and “seem to deliberately aim at and hit” the tree before being taken to hospital in an ambulance.
Harbot pleaded guilty to driving a motor vehicle while over the middle alcohol limit.
Magistrate James Morton fined her $900 and disqualified her licence for seven months, with a conviction recorded.
Dylan Glen Maclean
Maclean was caught drink-driving on Moore Street, Mirani, on December 18, 2021.
Police stopped his car at 2am, with Maclean driving and a female passenger in the car.
Maclean was unable to produce a licence for the police officer and returned a 0.130 BAC.
He faced court on January 5, 2022 and told Magistrate Damien Dwyer he had begun taking steps towards becoming sober.
He pleaded guilty to driving while over the middle alcohol limit, was fined $950 and his licence was disqualified for 10 months.
A conviction was recorded.
Jeffrey Scott McCandless – mid range
There is a common expression that suggests lightning cannot strike the same spot twice, but if you ask Jeffrey Scott McCandless he would disagree with that old adage.
On November 24, 2021 McCandless was stopped for a breath test at 1.15am on Malcomson St, North Mackay.
He was then taken to Northern Beaches Police Station and returned a 0.105 per cent blood alcohol reading.
But less than an hour later police stopped McCandless again for a second roadside breath test on Celeber Dr, Andergrove.
Because of the first breath test, McCandless was driving without a licence, and blew 0.079 per cent at 1.50am.
Police prosecutor Harry Coburn told Mackay Magistrates Court McCandless became agitated at police, and said “I f--king begged them, my f--king phone died”.
The court heard police told McCandless to calm down, but he continued swearing, and said, “If he was nice enough in the first place, I wouldn’t f--king be in this position right now”.
McCandless pleaded guilty to two drink-driving charges, as well as being a public nuisance and driving without a licence.
Magistrate Damien Dwyer said he would not punish McCandless for his outbursts, but he would lose his licence for the other charges.
He was fined $1750 and he was disqualified from driving for 12 months in total.
A conviction was not recorded.
Fatush Wilson Ngonya
A Mackay mother said she was concerned a conviction would affect her visa application after she was caught drink-driving.
Fatush Wilson Ngonya was tested for drink-driving after police found her in a parked car in the middle of Debbiesue Dr, Mount Pleasant.
The 9.15pm test on October 23, 2021, returned a reading of 0.132.
Ngonya said her family resided in Denmark, and she was worried the conviction would mean she would be deported.
After pleading guilty, she was fined $700 and disqualified from driving for six months.
Sean James Saal
The 34-year-old truck driver had a 0.113 BAC when police stopped him for a breath test on his way home from Grand View Hotel’s ‘rum appreciation night’ on October 9.
Bowen Magistrates Court the father of two downed five drinks before driving home to Queens Beach via Hay St about 1am.
He claimed to have waited 1.5 hours for a taxi before deciding he was probably OK to drive as his last drink had been at about 11pm.
Saal pleaded guilty to driving while over the middle alcohol limit and successfully applied for a work licence.
The sentence was an $850 fine and 10-month licence disqualification, with a conviction recorded.
Drug-driving
Miranda Lee Reynolds
Miranda Lee Reynolds did not admit to recent drug use when police stopped her for a test on Leichhardt Street, Bowen on October 25, but did say she had “been around people smoking crack the night before”.
Bowen Magistrates Court heard the provisional licence holder tested positive for methamphetamine.
She pleaded guilty to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva.
Acting Magistrate Athol Kennedy fined Reynolds $500 and disqualified her licence for nine months, with a conviction recorded.
Bradley James Adamson
Bradley James Anderson was stopped on the Bruce Highway at The Leap on November 4, 2021.
Mackay Magistrates Court heard he was tested for drugs in his system at 12.43pm, and returned a positive result with methylamphetamine present.
The tree logger told police he had used ice the day before, but he was not sure how much.
Anderson was on a provisional at the time.
He told Magistrate Damien Dwyer that it was a “silly mistake”.
“Well, it’s another one, isn’t it?” Dwyer said.
Anderson guilty to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva. was disqualified from driving for eight months and was fined $850.
A conviction was recorded.
Kareena Maree Potts
Kareena Maree Potts was on a probationary licence when police pulled her over at 4.52am on January 26, 2022.
Potts didn’t make any admissions about drug use to police, but a test revealed she was positive for methylamphetamine.
Potts pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on March 29 to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva.
She was disqualified from driving for seven months and fined $850.
A conviction was recorded.
Marshall Damien Dempsey
Dempsey crashed his unregistered motorbike while on methamphetamine.
Police were called to the crash on Paradise St in South Mackay at 1.30pm on January 27, 2022 after Marshall Damien Dempsey skimmed the back of a truck turning a corner.
Dempsey was taken to Mackay Base Hospital and tested positive for methamphetamine.
Dempsey pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on March 28 to driving while disqualified, driving unregistered and driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva.
Magistrate Damien Dwyer told Dempsey he shouldn’t have drug-driven in the first place.
“This is the second one in three, four months,” Mr Dwyer said.
Dempsey was disqualified from driving for two years and half years and was fined $2500.
A conviction was recorded.
Nathan Philpot
Nathan Philpott tested positive to driving while on methamphetamine on June 4 in Slade Point, and again on June 17 in Andergrove.
The court heard Philpott had also been caught driving with a suspended licence in Hampden on August 18 and driving disqualified in Miriam Vale on December 16. Philpott’s lawyer on the day Grace Sharma told the court her client said he had taken the drugs two days prior to driving.
She said Philpott was unemployed and wishing to return to Tasmania.
Magistrate Damien Dwyer fined Philpott $3000 to be referred to SPER.
Philpott guilty to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva, was disqualified from driving for four years and 11 months.
A conviction was recorded.
Ian Robert Williams
Police caught the renderer driving on the Bruce Highway at Bowen with methamphetamine and marijuana in his system on October 29.
Bowen Magistrates Court heard Williams had a conviction for the same offence in 2020.
He pleaded guilty to driving while a relevant drug is present in blood or saliva.
Acting Magistrate Athol Kennedy fined Williams $500 and disqualified his licence for three months, with a conviction recorded.
Adam John Wojeski
Wojeski tested positive to a roadside drug test on the morning of October 22, 2021.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Hannah Beaumont told the court the 44 year old’s results indicated methylamphetamines were present in his system at 11.31am.
Wojeski pleaded guilty to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva on January 10 at the Sarina Magistrates Court.
He was fined $1200 and had his licence disqualified for 12 months.
A conviction was recorded.
Arden Rodney Altmann
Altmann was busted drug-driving on a main Mackay street.
Arden Rodney Altmann was pulled over on Milton St for a traffic stop on December 12, 2021.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Hannah Beaumont told Mackay Magistrates Court that during the 11.50am routine stop, officers noticed Altmann’s “bloodshot, erratic eyes” and asked him if he had consumed any drugs.
He told police at the scene he had taken “ice and weed”.
He was taken to Mackay Base Hospital for analysis, where a sample confirmed methylamphetamines and marijuana were in his system.
Altmann pleaded guilty to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva, received a $1000 fine and was disqualified from driving for 12 months.
A conviction was recorded.
Jayden Anthony Tortora
Tortora was stopped at 12.10pm on December 7, and returned a positive drug test.
Police prosecutor David Epstein told the court Tortora’s result came back with methylamphetamines detected in his saliva.
The court heard police also searched Tortora’s car, finding a glass pipe and a set of scales.
When police asked Tortora to produce a licence, he said he could not as it had been suspended on November 2, 2021.
Magistrate Damien Dwyer said Tortora was a repeat offender.
Tortora pleaded guilty to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva and possessing utensils, was fined $2600 and disqualified for 12 months.
Because he drove on a disqualified licence, he was also suspended from driving for a further two years, meaning he will not get his licence back until March 2025.
A conviction was recorded.
Deanna Marie Stocks
Deanna Marie Stocks had little to say during her appearance at Bowen Magistrates Court for disqualified driving and drug-driving, but her mother took the opportunity to speak up from the gallery to tell her “never, ever do that shit again”.
The court heard police caught Stocks driving with methamphetamine and amphetamine in her system on Scottville Rd on July 17, 2021 and driving without a licence on Stanley St – both in Collinsville – on September 30, 2021.
She told police she had smoked the drugs before driving on July 17.
She also had the drug Aripiprazole in her system to treat diagnosed schizophrenia.
She pleaded guilty to driving without a licence disqualified by a court order, and driving while a relevant drug is present in blood or saliva, and told the court she spent about $50 a week on drugs.
Magistrate James Morton told Stocks using illicit drugs would only make her mental health problems worse.
He sentenced her to 12 months’ probation and disqualified her licence for two years.
Convictions were recorded.
Karl John Carson Peepall
Karl John Carson committed his fourth driving offence when police picked him up in Paget on August 20, 2021 at 9.47pm.
Peepall pleaded guilty in Mackay Magistrates Court on November 1 to driving while a relevant drug was present in blood or saliva and driving without a licence.
The court heard police pulled Peepall over on Broadsound Rd where he tested positive to methamphetamine and marijuana.
Peepall said he hadn’t realised his licence was expired but told the court he was sorry for his actions and “knew what he’d gotten himself into”.
Magistrate Damien Dwyer disqualified Peepall from driving for nine months and recorded a conviction.
He was fined $1000.
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The LNP’s spokesman for Sport and Olympics has repeatedly refused to rule out building a new Brisbane stadium, despite his leader appearing to do so just days ago.