Patient ran off with painkiller

A 27-YEAR-OLD man being treated by paramedics in the back of an ambulance had stolen a kit of pain killers and run off, Toowoomba Magistrates Court has heard.

Queensland Ambulance Service paramedics had responded to a call of a man having sustained a dislocated jaw and arrived outside a Toowoomba residence about 5.48pm, October 30, to find Brennan Lyle.

After placing him into the back of the ambulance for assessment, the paramedics had temporarily stepped outside, police prosecutor Leea Trewin told the court.

One of the officers returned to find Lyle accessing the controlled drugs cabinet and when confronted he had snatched a kit of pain relief medication and ran out of the back of the ambulance.

A foot chase ensued with the paramedics chasing the thief who had a kit containing five vials of fentanyl, three vials of morphine and one vial of oxycontin, the court heard.

One of the officers eventually caught up with Lyle who threw the kit away.

The would-be fugitive was restrained until police arrived to arrest him, Senior Constable Trewin said.

All of the vials of pain relief medication were recovered, she told the court.

Lyle appeared by video link from the prison to plead guilty to stealing the kit and to three counts of unlawfully possessing dangerous drugs arising from the vials of fentanyl, morphine and oxycontin.

Ironically, he had been remanded in custody primarily on a charge of assault of an ambulance officer arising from the incident but after more than three months in custody police had withdrawn that charge prior to sentence.

Defence solicitor Chelsea Saldumbide told the court her client was 26 and drunk at the time of the incident.

He had over the years sustained five broken jaws for which he had had a number of surgeries which led to him becoming reliant on prescription pain killers for a time.

Lyle’s jaw did become dislocated from time to time, she said.

At the time, he had been working in shows in North Queensland but had returned to Toowoomba during a two week break which was when this had occurred.

Ms Saldumbide said her client instructed he was “disgusted in himself” by his actions that evening.

Acting Magistrate Roger Stark acknowledged Lyle had been in custody 109 days which was longer than the one month jail term he imposed on the 27-year-old for the offences and ordered he be released immediately on parole.