Toowoomba court: Sean Stacey Byrnes threatened with jail if he enters CBD

A man charged with assaulting people at two licensed venues in the Toowoomba CBD has been banned from entered the area, with a magistrate threatening to lock him up if he failed to follow court orders.

Sean Stacey Byrnes was threatened with jail in Toowoomba Magistrates Court if he enters the Toowoomba CBD in breach of his bail.

All doubt has been removed from Sean Stacey Byrnes’ mind about the consequences of entering the CBD after magistrate Mark Howden forcefully told him he would be jailed if he did.

The 42-year-old is charged with a raft of serious offences including assault and wilful damage that relate to offences at separate Toowoomba CBD nightclubs.

On July 20 he was granted bail on the charges on the condition that he stay out of the CBD at all times.

Despite the strict bail condition, police found Byrne at the intersection of Ruthven and Margaret streets on Thursday at 4pm.

Byrnes was arrested and held in the watch-house overnight to face the Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Friday, where he pleaded guilty to breaching bail.

“He told police he wanted to use a public phone at that location, they asked why he couldn’t use another and he replied that tried to use one at the Toowoomba Hospital but the person he called did not answer,” Police prosecutor Nicholas Pratt said.

Mr Pratt told the court that Byrnes was serving two suspended sentences at the time of the breach offence, and that he had a lengthy criminal history.

Duty lawyer Paige Hetherington said there was no allegation of violence with the breach.

“Given that he spent a night in the watch-house, it might be open to the court to convict and not further punish,” she said.

In sentencing, Mr Howden took into account Byrnes’ lengthy criminal history and extended each suspended rail term by a day.

He also fined Byrnes $350.

“Don’t go into the CBD,” he said.

“Next time it will be a term of imprisonment.”