Lachlan Joseph William Hogan faces Toowoomba Magistrates Court accused of trafficking prescription cannabis

A Toowoomba man accused of trafficking cannabis that was intended for medical use has faced court where he has made an application for bail. Here’s what happened.

A man accused of selling on his medicinal cannabis appeared emotionless as he was denied bail despite the chance that delays in the Director of Public Prosecutions office could lead to him serving more time in pre-trial custody than he would otherwise be sentenced to if he pleaded guilty.

Lachlan Joseph William Hogan, 25, stands accused of trafficking and other indictable offences but his lawyer told the Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Tuesday that there were significant delays in moving the matters forward.

“The indictable matters proceeded by way of registry committal on February 1 and no indictment has been presented,” Sarah Campbell of Skuse Graham Lawyers said.

“There is expected to be some ongoing delay with that.”

This is despite the trafficking charge dating from August 2022 and Mr Hogan being held on remand from December 24.

As a result it was still up to the Magistrates Court to grant Mr Hogan bail on his lesser charges, namely six counts of stealing, three drug offences, two counts of possessing a thing used in commission of a crime and four counts of driving with a license suspended by demerit points.

Ms Campbell told the court the lesser offences were alleged to have been committed while her client was on bail for the Supreme Court matters, and under the cloud of drug use.

She added that Mr Hogan had used his time on remand to get clean and would stay that way if he was released, but conceded his criminal history was against him.

“My client has a terrible history of compliance with court orders,” she said.

“When he is drug affected he is not thinking about court.”

Ms Campbell said the court could put conditions on his bail that included regular drug testing or drug counselling.

“He is still a very young person and he has done a number of courses while on remand – everything that has been on offer for him – and has been working in the laundry,” she said.

“He presents in a healthy way.”

In objecting to Mr Hogan’s parole, police prosecutor Anita Page said the Crown case was strong and it included text messages that detail the alleged trafficking and drug supply to multiple people until August 2022.

She added the prior court orders did not reduce his offending.

“You will not from his criminal history he had multiple probation orders which he has breached,” Ms Paige said.

“He has been given (that benefit) but has continued to offend and at that time was before the court for trafficking cannabis, supplying drugs … and possessing phone use in connection to an offence, namely the trafficking and supply of drugs.

“Investigations by police indicated the defendant supplied a significant number of dangerous drugs over an extended period of time to numerous people and that at that time he was subject to probation and parole from May 2022.

“He indicated he has access to medicinal cannabis and that was actually the cannabis he was trafficking.”

Magistrate Kay Ryan agreed with Ms Page and denied Mr Hogan’s bail.

He was remanded to appear in the same court on July 11.