Abusive woman evicted

A GOLD Coast woman who terrorised neighbours by screaming abuse and throwing plates will be evicted from her taxpayer-subsided unit this weekend.

The Department of Housing and Public works went to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal to evict the woman and her adult son after receiving more than 70 complaints from 20 neighbours about the woman.

The complaints were made over about 18 months but nine were lodged between March 26 and 31 this year.

When the Department of Housing tried to warn the woman she would be evicted, she threatened that “everyone better watch out”.

It is the seventh housing commission home for the woman since 1999. Only one other tenancy did not result in multiple complaints.

In 2014 she racked up more than $4000 in maintenance bills for a home at Kingston.

QCAT ruled the woman must be out of the Southport unit by midnight on Sunday.

The tribunal suppressed her name.

According to QCAT documents, the woman was paying just $66.15 a week in rent for the centrally located unit.

“Witnesses say that (the woman’s) behaviour caused tenants in a neighbouring complex to leave, that ‘this woman can yell for hours at a time which disturbs sleep on a regular basis’ …,” the QCAT judgment said.

Other witnesses reported seeing the woman ranting outside at no one and allege she was involved in an assault.

“… a registered nurse, refers to (the woman’s) abusive behaviour, having being greatly affected by it, and not feeling safe in her home,” the documents said. “She witnessed (the woman) throwing ceramic plates at a block of units opposite and to yelling profanities at a passer-by.”

A Department of Housing officer told QCAT they had tried to help the woman by meeting with her mental health workers, holding regular meetings and advising that her behaviour was not acceptable.

“(The woman) promised that things would end up being a whole lot worse if (the Department of Housing) tried to kick her out because she wouldn’t care anymore and ‘everyone better watch out’,” the documents said.

“When asked to explain what she meant, (the woman) said: ‘You’ll see’.’’

The woman told QCAT the complaints were “ridiculously high” and “nothing but lies … without consideration of what things they do sometimes”.

She said she was being pushed to her “limit” by nasty, hate-filled, bullying and manipulating people.

QCAT was told the woman suffered from a mental illness but no evidence of this was produced to the court.

It was accepted the woman had also suffered from domestic violence previously but there was no evidence she had been subjected to violence while at Southport.