Quentin Heine reveals kidnapping experience after pleading guilty to failing to appear in court

A Sunshine Coast fly-in fly-out worker has revealed during a sentencing hearing on drug charges how he was tortured during a horrifying kidnapping where he had part of his finger “chopped off”.

Quentin Jay Ross Heine appeared in Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Friday by video from the watch-house. Picture: Social media

A sentence hearing for a Sunshine Coast man on minor drug and failing to appear charges has uncovered a horror kidnapping and torture session he was subjected to.

Quentin Jay Ross Heine revealed his horror experience to his lawyer Luke Bull before he appeared in the Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Friday, where he pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to appear, possessing drugs and possessing utensils.

Police prosecutor Shane Raison said the 20-year-old was arrested at the North Stradbroke Island suburb of Dunwich following a police raid on September 12, 2023.

Senior Sergeant Raison said Heine was the subject of the search warrant where they found a glass bong, a grinder and a clip seal bag with 33.7g of marijuana.

Heine told police he uses medical cannabis but could not provide a script.

The court heard the 19-year-old failed to appear in court twice, which led to police attending a Sunshine Coast home on Wednesday.

Senior Sergeant Raison said Heine told police he failed to attend court on one of his charges due to being in hospital with a finger injury.

Defence lawyer Luke Bull told magistrate Rod Madsen it was a “pretty unusual matter”, as Heine had been involved in kidnapping in March.

Mr Bull said he was instructed that Heine was with another person in a smoking area on the Gold Coast when a bag was pulled over his head and the pair was taken.

Quentin Jay Ross Heine. Picture: Social media

The court heard Heine and the other man, who Mr Bull said Heine did not know, were kept captive for three days, which his lawyer said was a case of mistaken identity.

Heine, who appeared in court by video from the Maroochydore watch-house, showed the court the top of one of his fingers which was “taken off” when he was tortured, according to Mr Bull.

The Sunshine Coast man then showed his leg to the court and his defence lawyer said it had been drilled into by a power tool.

Mr Bull said Heine told his captors they had the wrong person and they dropped him off at the hospital.

He confirmed the Sunshine Coast man was in the hospital for several days.

The court was told Heine had not reported the kidnapping to police as he truly had no idea who took him hostage.

His lawyer said since then Heine was trying to deal with the trauma. Mr Bull said he spoke to a prosecutor who told him of a similar occurrence in Beerwah where another person was “wrongly taken” and their finger was “chopped off”.

Senior Sergeant Raison confirmed this in court.

Magistrate Rod Madsen acknowledged the “tragic circumstances” in the lead-up to Heine’s failure to appear in court and believed there were medical reasons why the 19-year-old could not come to court.

Heine was placed on a 12-month probation order.

No conviction was recorded.

Originally published as Quentin Heine reveals kidnapping experience after pleading guilty to failing to appear in court