Chef's costly kitchen decision
A RAINBOW Beach chef who went armed in public with a boning knife after a fight near the Rainbow Beach Hotel was convicted and fined $450 in Gympie Magistrates Court yesterday.
Nathan Bird, 24, of Zircon St, was also convicted of contravening a police direction to present himself at the Tin Can Bay police station within seven days.
He pleaded guilty to both offences.
The court heard Bird was a chef at the Rainbow Beach Hotel at the time of the knife offence at 12.30am on April 8 this year.
Tin Can Bay and Rainbow Beach police were called to the hotel after a fight broke out in front of the premises.
Bird was intoxicated at the time, police said.
The court heard CCTV vision showed Bird going back into the kitchen of the hotel after the fight and placing a boning knife down his pants before returning outside.
The duty solicitor said his client was originally from Western Australia and had booked his flight to return there.
In another matter, a Gympie father pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud yesterday after he cashed two dishonoured cheques at the Empire Hotel in December and January, and another one at the Freemasons Hotel in January.
Richard Paul Thomas, 48, pleaded guilty to the offences.
He was placed on probation for 12 months, ordered to do 50 hours community service and to pay the Empire Hotel restitution of $482, and the Freemasons Hotel $273.
