Sandra Helene Spijkers jailed for three years on drug, cash offences after pleading guilty in Toowoomba Supreme Court

Police followed a woman to her Ruthven Street home where they found a range of drugs, and more than $10,000 cash suspected of being linked to drug dealing. Here’s what they found.

A Warwick woman found with more than 11g of pure meth and $11,500 cash has been sentenced to three years in jail.

However, Sandra Helene Spijkers will not be returned to prison after a judge found the 19 months she’d spent in custody before being sentenced was time enough.

Toowoomba Supreme Court heard police had followed Spijkers as she drove into a residence Ruthven Street about 1am on December 18, 2020.

Due to her extensive criminal history of drugs and other matters, police searched the car she was driving and found 16.781g of methylamphetamine, of which 11.3g was found to be pure, as well as a smaller amount of heroin, suboxone strips, some of the drug GBL.

She also had $11,500 cash suspected as proceeds of drug dealing, scales, clip seal bags, mobile phones and prisoner identification cards, Crown prosecutor Emily Coley told the court.

Sandra Spijkers.

Spijkers was on bail at the time for an earlier drug offence and had just completed a period of parole, Ms Coley said.

The 42-year-old spent 592 days in custody before being granted Supreme Court bail, the court heard.

Spijkers pleaded guilty to a number of charges including possessing a dangerous drug in an amount above the 2g schedule.

Barrister Frank Martin said Spijkers was a model prisoner who worked as a librarian in jail but her problems arose when she was in the community where drugs were being used.

“She’s a hopeless drug addict, and she realised that,” Mr Martin said.

Mr Martin added that his client was told that further use of drugs with her medical condition would kill her.

Justice David Boddice said Spijkers had a “lengthy and appalling criminal history”, but noted she was trying to turn her life around.

He sentenced her to three years in jail, with immediate parole release.

A total of 592 days of pre-sentence custody was declared.