A man accused of a woman’s shooting murder on the Sunshine Coast has been denied bail after claiming he’d been threatened with a stabbing if he didn’t bring drugs into prison.
Brandon Grant, 32, is due to stand trial for murder over his alleged role in the death of 25-year-old Feebie McIntosh at a home in Moffat Beach on May 27, 2022.
Grant applied for bail in Brisbane Supreme Court on Tuesday after spending 18 months on remand for the murder charge.
Defence barrister Angus Edwards told Justice Rebecca Treston that the case against his client was weak as there was no direct evidence that he had conspired with the man accused of firing the bullet that killed Ms McIntosh.
“My client has spent significant time in prison on charges for which he is unlikely to be convicted,” Mr Edwards said.
Prosecutors claim Grant saw another man, Bradley Ian Cotten, had a gel blaster imitation firearm and told him: “That’s not a gun, this is a gun.”
Grant then allegedly produced a partially assembled firearm before handing it to Cotten who then allegedly rendered the weapon operational before loading it with a bullet and shooting Ms McIntosh in the head.
Prosecutors also alleged Grant organised to remove drugs and cash from Ms McIntosh’s person as she was being driven to hospital by a group of people who were at the house at the time.
Mr Edwards said Grant had been good friends with Ms McIntosh and she invited him over on the day of the shooting because she was afraid of Cotten.
“Any suggestion they were in cahoots is bizarre in the extreme … everyone present says my client was upset by the shooting. He had absolutely no motive to kill,” Mr Edwards said.
He said Grant had been accused by Corrective Services of possessing a weapon and a person close to him had been charged with attempting to supply him with drugs while in custody.
“The (police report) suggests my client was being stood over and threatened with stabbing if he did not bring in drugs for someone else,” Mr Edwards said.
“I suggest that’s a pretty good reason for why he might want to arm himself in custody.”
Crown prosecutor Rebecca Marks opposed bail and said the case against Grant was strong given circumstantial evidence, including him possessing ammunition similar to the type used to kill Ms McIntosh.
“His criminal history shows him committing offences while subject to bail and parole,” she said.
Justice Treston said she could not see how any proposed bail conditions could relieve the risk of Grant committing offences after being released or failing to appear in court.
“He has found himself in a toxic mix of drugs and weapons … He has been in jail for some time. He has not been able to rid himself of a connection to drugs,” Justice Treston said.
She found Grant had not shown why his continued detention was unwarranted and refused him bail.
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