A man and woman who attempted to fly a drone carrying drugs and phones into a Queensland jail have been sentenced to prison.

November 16, 2018

A man and a woman’s botched attempt to fly drugs and mobile phones into a Queensland jail using a drone has landed them prison sentences.

Days after being released from the jail on parole, Donald Griffin returned with a drone to the Arthur Gorrie Correctional Centre with his cousin’s former partner, Karlie Lorraine Cuzzu.

The hapless pair walked through bushland in the darkness to the prison’s perimeter where they attempted to fly the contraband to an inmate Griffin, 22, had met while serving time for another offence.

The court heard the drone was damaged during flight and prison authorities, who had become aware of the ill-fated drug delivery, alerted police.

Police found Griffin and Cuzzu at their car “sweating, agitated and nervous” soon after on the same day, October 24, 2017.

Judge Michael Burnett noted that the drone, drugs and phones were found in a school bag belonging to one of Cuzzu’s three children.

He was scathing of Cuzzu, 35, after her lawyer, Dominic Nguyen, tried to argue she was needed by her children and should be shown leniency.

“What you haven’t got before me is evidence she’s an involved and supportive parent … (but ) she’s wandering around Wacol at one o’clock in the morning,” he said.

Judge Burnett sentenced Cuzzu to 18 months’ jail, suspended after three months.

“It is serious offending. It’s not what we commonly see, which is a loved one simply trying to provide a drug to another loved one,” he said.

Judge Burnett was easier on Griffin, who he said was still young and had a good prospect of rehabilitation if he returned to his family in Bundaberg.

He was sentenced to 18 months in jail suspended immediately at the Brisbane District Court on Friday.

The pair were convicted of supplying a dangerous drug to a prisoner.