Robert Patrick Coates sentenced for public nuisance in Proserpine Magistrates Court

A boozed up man who hit bars in each of the main towns in the Whitsunday region has harassed customers and thrown alcohol everywhere, while he was told he should not blame it all on his addictions.

A boozed up man who hit bars in each of the main towns in the Whitsunday region has harrassed customers and thrown alcohol everywhere, while he was told he should not blame it all on his addictions. Picture: Contributed

A boozed up man who hit bars in each of the main towns in the Whitsunday region has harassed customers and thrown alcohol everywhere.

He was told he should not blame it all on his addictions.

Robert Patrick Coates, 57, who represented himself in Proserpine Magistrates Court, thanked the prosecutor for her “praise” as he was facing five charges, with three related to public nuisance.

Police Prosecutor Sergeant Emma Myors told the court police received complaints from the Magnums Hotel in Airlie Beach as Coates harassed customers, and was yelling and swearing at people about 1.25pm on October 12.

She said he had an opened bottle of champagne with him and had moved on to disturbing people near the taxi area.

Magnums Backpackers and Nightclub Airlie Beach. Picture: Contributed

The next day, at approximately 11:43am, Coates went to the Proserpine Prince of Wales Hotel, and when he was told the kitchen had not opened yet, he became aggressive towards the staff and threw “wine onto the front door” when he left.

When police arrived at the scene, they issued a move on notice to Coates to not approach closer to 300m from Main St in the next eight hours but he returned at 5:45pm.

Prince of Wales Hotel on Proserpine Main St. Picture: Contributed

On October 13, police were called in to an incident in Bowen this time, as Coates was slurring racist remarks to customers at the Bowen North Australian Motel around 9pm, the court heard.

Officers apprehended and had a chat to him, but received several calls about Coates only 25 minutes later as he was in front of the Commonwealth Bank asking passers-by for money and becoming aggressive when they did not give him anything.

Sergeant Myors said he had stopped a car to ask them for money and when they refused, he “banged his hand on the bonnet of the vehicle”.

He was arrested by police and kept calling male officers “fu – ing Russian spies” and female officers “s--ts”.

North Australian Motel in Bowen. Picture: Contributed

Coates told Magistrate Michelle Howard the reason he had behaved in this way was because of his alcohol addiction that he had since childhood and that he did not remember all that happened.

“It’s all I really know,” he said explaining his dad had introduced him to alcohol and cigarettes when he was in primary school.

Ms Howard told Coates this provided context but not an excuse.

“You had 20 years of adult life to sort yourself out,” she said.

“You can’t keep blaming it all on this circumstance.”

Coates pleaded guilty to three charges of public nuisance, to disobeying a police order and to failing to appear in court.

He was fined $1100.

Originally published as Robert Patrick Coates sentenced for public nuisance in Proserpine Magistrates Court