Daughter of MP tried to flush drugs
THE daughter of Whitsunday MP Jason Costigan tried to flush cocaine and heroin down the toilet when police came knocking at her friend’s Sydney unit last year, court documents have revealed.
Brianna Costigan has escaped conviction for charges of drug possession and having stolen goods in custody after she pleaded guilty to the offences at Waverley Local Court yesterday.
The UNSW scholarship student, who told the court she was set to begin studying criminal law next trimester, appeared alongside her mother sans the headscarf she has sported in social media posts after having recently converted to Islam.
Her lawyer, Ihab Jamal, told the court his client was remorseful and had been “pressured” into holding the drugs and a stolen trolley by her now ex-partner.
Agreed facts revealed the freshly turned 20-year-old had two small plastic bags in her purse – one containing heroin and the other cocaine – when she arrived to find police speaking with her mother at the Maroubra apartment on April 26 last year.
Under the ruse of retrieving her passport from her handbag, she “bolted” to the bathroom and “began emptying the contents of her bag into the toilet”.
“Police pulled the accused away from the toilet and arrested her,” the facts stated.
During a search of the unit officers found a black and silver trolley that had been reported stolen from a secure locker on Anzac Pde, Maroubra, on April 22 last year.
On Costigan’s mobile phone were images of a Ryobi generator and Coleman Cooker – both green colour – that had been reported stolen in the same incident and were advertised on a buy and sell page for $500 and $70 respectively.
Magistrate Alison Hawkins imposed an 18-month community release order for the goods in custody charge and 12-month good behaviour bond for the drugs offence.
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IN THE sky is where Diogo Coradini longs to be every minute of the day, describing the stratosphere as “magical”.
The North Side Paragliding training school owner and Far North Queensland Paragliding Club safety officer first took flight 18 years ago in Brazil.
Mr Coradini said he started the school a year ago to share his passion for gliding with North Queensland.
The paragliding school is a quality flight training facility certified by the Hang Gliding Federation Australia.
Students can enrol in courses to learn knowledge and techniques to fly as well as progress to skydiving and hang gliding.
Mr Coradini said the feeling of freedom while paragliding was unparalleled.
“You can think anything up there, you are away from the reality of the world and it is your own time with no noise, no trouble, it is only you and the beautiful world and nature,” he said.
Mr Coradini moved to Australia from Brazil 12 years ago and said he would never forget the feeling the first time he took to the sky.
“I still remember when my feet was leaving the earth and I was like, ‘wow, I am just shooting out and getting re