Latest news with #MathewCuskelly
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Update in case of QLD influencer accused of drugging her baby
A social media influencer accused of poisoning her baby had so many medical documents that her solicitor had to bring in specialist staff, a magistrate has heard. Queensland Police claim that a 34-year-old woman, whose name is not being released due to legal reasons, allegedly gave her one-year-old child unauthorised prescription and pharmacy medications between August and October 2024 to boost her social media profile and secure $60,000 in donations. The Sunshine Coast woman is currently on bail and was not required to appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday when her charges were mentioned. Her solicitor, Mathew Cuskelly, appeared by phone and told magistrate Anthony Gett that he was seeking a further adjournment, according to AAP. 'We continue to review the brief (of evidence) … I have recruited an assistant with a medical background who is reviewing quite a voluminous amount of medical documentation,' Mr Cuskelly said. 'It is quite a large and complex brief.' DNA evidence to be disclosed The prosecutor did not object to the adjournment and stated that there was further material to disclose, including DNA evidence. 'It relates to a pill seized from the hospital that was sent for DNA testing, and the interim report was returned detecting the DNA of the defendant,' the prosecutor said. In January, the mother was charged with five counts of administering poison with intent to harm, three counts of preparation to commit crimes with dangerous things, and one count each of torture and making child exploitation material and fraud. Prosecutors have told the woman's previous bail hearing that the infant had been hospitalised due to tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), a genetic condition that causes benign tumours in multiple organs. 'Avoid detection' Jack Scott, the crown prosecutor, previously informed magistrate Stephen Courtney that the woman had refused to acknowledge her infant had a manageable, non-fatal condition and had administered multiple drugs to the infant. 'Her actions have created a serious extra symptom … on one occasion, a code blue cardiac arrest requiring resuscitation,' he said. Mr Scott had previously claimed that on October 3, 2024, the woman had moved a video camera monitoring the infant during a brain activity test in order to 'avoid detection' of her actions. 'She was captured on footage with a syringe. She administered via the nasogastric tube (attached to the infant). She used the opportunity while hidden by a blanket,' he alleged. 'About 30 to 40 minutes after this incident, (the infant) was rendered completely unconscious.' 'Entitled to a fair trial' Mr Scott claimed that the various drugs the mum gave to the baby may have led to unnecessary brain surgery, aimed at finding the cause of the seizures. Previously, the defence solicitor had told Mr Courtney that an email from health authorities stated the child was still experiencing symptoms of seizures. Mr Cuskelly has argued that his client has never been convicted of any crime and is currently facing a court case that could last for two to three years. 'My client is entitled to a fair trial. Police have the onus to establish beyond reasonable doubt,' he said at a previous bail hearing. The woman was granted bail 11 days after her arrest on January 17. On Monday, Mr Gett adjourned the matter until a further mention on August 1.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Update in case against influencer accused of poisoning her baby to gain online fame
The case of a social media influencer accused of poisoning her baby contains so many medical documents her solicitor had to hire specialist staff, a magistrate has heard. Queensland Police allege a 34-year-old woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, gave her one-year-old child unauthorised prescription and pharmacy medications between August and October 2024 to grow her social media profile and gain $60,000 in donations. The woman, who is on bail, was not required to appear on Monday in Brisbane Magistrates Court when her charges were briefly mentioned. Her solicitor, Mathew Cuskelly, appeared by phone and told magistrate Anthony Gett he was seeking a further adjournment. 'We continue to review the brief (of evidence) ... I have recruited an assistant with a medical background who is reviewing quite a voluminous amount of medical documentation,' Mr Cuskelly. 'It is quite a large and complex brief.' The prosecutor did not oppose the adjournment and said there was further material to disclose involving DNA. 'It relates to a pill seized from the hospital that was sent for DNA testing and the interim report was returned detecting the DNA of the defendant,' the prosecutor said. The woman was charged in January with five counts of administering poison with intent to harm, three counts of preparation to commit crimes with dangerous things and one count each of torture, making child exploitation material and fraud. Prosecutors have submitted to the woman's previous bail hearing that the infant had been hospitalised for tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), a genetic condition that results in benign tumours in multiple organs. Crown prosecutor Jack Scott previously told magistrate Stephen Courtney the woman did not accept that her infant had a manageable, non-fatal condition and had given the infant multiple drugs. 'Her actions have created a serious extra symptom … on one occasion a code blue cardiac arrest requiring resuscitation,' he said. Mr Scott previously alleged that on October 3, 2024 the woman had moved a video camera that was monitoring the infant during a brain activity test 'to avoid detection' of her actions. 'She was captured on footage with a syringe. She administered via the nasogastric tube (attached to the infant). She used the opportunity while hidden by a blanket,' he said. 'About 30 to 40 minutes after this incident (the infant) was rendered completely unconscious.' Mr Scott alleged the various drugs given to the baby may have resulted in unnecessary brain surgery intended to find the cause of seizures. The defence solicitor previously told Mr Courtney an email from health authorities had stated the child 'continues to present symptoms' of seizures. Mr Cuskelly has submitted that his client had never been found guilty of any crime and was facing a court case that might last two or three years. 'My client is entitled to a fair trial. Police have the onus to establish beyond reasonable doubt,' he said at a previous bail hearing. The woman was released on bail 11 days after her arrest on January 17.
Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Bizarre twist after Aussie influencer was accused of poisoning her baby girl for social media likes
A social media influencer who allegedly drugged her baby for donations has had her case delayed due to pending DNA evidence after the prosecution tendered a huge evidence brief. The 34-year-old Sunshine Coast mother is alleged to have poisoned the infant over the course of several months while obtaining social media notoriety and financial gain from claims the child was battling a potentially fatal illness. The case has so many medical documents the woman's solicitor has had to hire specialist staff, a magistrate has heard. She was charged with five counts of administering poison with intent to harm, three counts of preparation to commit crimes with dangerous things, a single count each of torture, making child exploitation material and fraud. Police have alleged the woman –who cannot be named for legal reasons – earned more than $60,000 from a GoFundMe campaign to 'assist' her child. That money has since been refunded to donors. They also alleged the woman went to great lengths to obtain unauthorised and prescription medications to give her child. She allegedly covered for the alleged actions by using leftover medicine for another member of the household. The alleged abuse was detected on October 15, 2024 after the girl was admitted to a Brisbane hospital suffering a serious medical episode. Lawyer Mathew Cuskelly, acting on behalf of the woman, requested an eight-week adjournment at Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday in order to assess a brief of evidence provided by the prosecution. He said he had hired an additional assistant with a medical background to review 'quite a voluminous amount of medical documentation', according to the Courier Mail. Some of the brief had been provided by the prosecution earlier this month. 'It is quite a large and complex brief,' he said. A prosecutor divulged some material was yet to be disclosed, including material which related to the DNA testing of a pill collected from a hospital and separate materials relating to an alleged breach of bail. The court heard the 34-year-old had not been charged over a breach of bail, but her ex-partner previously made the claim in a statement to police. Mr Cuskelly at the time argued his client had not been involved in any such bail breach and requested Queensland police provide the former partner's statement. Deputy Chief Magistrate Anthony Gett said he would place the case on the DNA call over because of the outstanding DNA material. The list was created last December to manage criminal cases at the committal phase which can get delayed purely on account of pending DNA evidence. The courts adjourned the matter until August 1 for a mention the woman does not have to attend.
