‘Wilsonton 9’ mum returned to prison
A 34-YEAR-OLD mother of seven who gained notoriety by being a member of the infamous “Wilsonton Nine” has been sentenced by a Toowoomba court for fresh offences.
In January last year, Shiralee Fernando was sentenced to nine years in jail with 991 days pre-sentence custody declared time served, after pleading guilty to the manslaughter of Debbie Combarngo.
Ms Combarngo died as a result of injuries sustained during a beating at a Wilsonton unit on May 6, 2018.
A total of nine people had originally been charged with murder but later had the charge reduced to manslaughter to which all pleaded guilty.
The group, which became known as the “Wilsonton Nine”, received various jail terms.
Fernando appeared before Toowoomba Magistrates Court on Thursday via video link from the prison.
She pleaded guilty to possessing a small amount of cannabis, two pipes for smoking the drug and scales, scissors and clip seal bags related to drug offending.
Police prosecutor Chris Willson told the court Fernando had been found with the items during a police search of her home on June 17.
She had also failed to appear in court on August 11, Senior Constable Willson said.
Fernando’s solicitor Ryan McCullough, of MacDonald Law, told the court his client had been doing well on parole after her release from jail but having lost her partner while in custody things “got big on her” and she returned to drug use.
The 34-year-old had spent 70 days in custody since her arrest and hoped to be released from jail soon, after which she was would relocate away from Toowoomba, he said.
Magistrate Kay Phillipson said Fernando had suffered a “significant consequence” in being returned to prison after having her parole suspended for these offences.
Ms Phillipson convicted Fernando but ordered no further penalty.