Accused stalker Anthony George Denis Butler denied bail in Rockhampton court

A 36-page criminal history, including incidents of violence and substance abuse, sealed an accused stalker’s fate in court.

A man accused of stalking a woman has been denied bail despite having spent 2.5 years on remand.

A man accused of stalking a woman has been denied bail despite having spent 2.5 years on remand.

Anthony George Denis Butler, 30, has been charged with stalking and two assaults occasioning bodily harm which his lawyer, Nicholas Pratt, told Rockhampton Magistrates Court this week that Mr Butler intends to contest.

Mr Butler is also charged with one count each of enter dwelling and commit, supplying a dangerous drug, possess tainted property, possessing a category D/H/R weapon and possessing explosives

He also has two counts each of buying or possessing S4 or S8 medicines or hazardous poisons without authorisation, two trespass, breaching bail and common assault.

Mr Pratt made a bail application for Mr Butler on July 10, saying even if Mr Butler was found guilty at trial, he had already spent more time in custody than a sentence would require.

The court heard part of the remand period was for a group of charges laid back in 2022 with some of those charges now dismissed in Rockhampton District Court in February 2025.

Mr Pratt said Mr Butler had issues in the past with alcohol, marijuana and methamphetamines but had abstained from consuming them for the 11 months due to be held on remand.

The court heard Butler had been remanded from November 2022 until July 2024 and returned to custody in August 2024 when the stalking charge was laid.

Mr Pratt said his client proposed to live in Townsville where he had family support and would seek work.

Police prosecutor Mirren Smith said the proposed bail address could be mitigated, coupled with wearing an electronic monitoring device and reporting conditions.

She provided Magistrate Peter Kuskie with three objections to bail affidavits – one from November 2022 and two from separate dates 2024 – and pointed out Mr Butler had entries in his criminal record for breaching bail.

Mr Kuskie said Mr Butler had a 36-page criminal record with an extensive history of violence and serious offending with lengthy periods of imprisonment.

“I’m particularly concerned that some of those offences have been committed while Mr Butler was in custody, including mutiny and serious assaults on corrective service officers,” he said.

“In the past, Mr Butler has been apprehended with a concealed firearm.

“He has a significant history of substance abuse as is evidence from his criminal history … that doesn’t give the court confidence that if he’s released, even on strict conditions, that he will not fall back into substance abuse.”

Mr Kuskie said that the Crown case against Mr Butler regarding the stalking charge was strong and included telephone calls which police were able to listen to.

“It’s very concerning that even while in custody, it’s alleged that Mr Butler has made very, very specific threats to the complainant and members of her family, threats of actual violence and …. That’s violence that he’s prepared to wait to visit upon her,” he said.

Mr Kuskie ruled Mr Butler was a risk to the community of committing further offences and a risk to the complainant which could not be properly addressed even with the suggested conditions.

Mr Butler was remanded in custody, a brief of evidence for the AOBH charges was ordered and all of his charges will next be mentioned in court on September 3.

His stalking charge has gone through the committal process and is waiting for the indictment to be presented in the district court.

Originally published as Accused stalker Anthony George Denis Butler denied bail in Rockhampton court