Man on run from police for eight years found in Laidley
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IT took a car accident in Laidley to reveal Lawrence Kean had been on the run from police for eight years.
Kean, originally from North Queensland, appeared in the Gatton Magistrates Court on Monday, for charges dating back from 2012 to 1999.
Kean, aged 55, pleaded guilty to two offences of failing to appear in the Bowen Magistrate's Court in December 2012.
A warrant for his arrest was issued in 2012 and Kean was on the run from police until he was involved in a traffic accident in Laidley on August 27, 2020.
Police confirmed Kean's identity at the accident on Whites Road, Laidley, where they discovered the existence of a warrant for his arrest dating back almost eight years.
Police prosecutor senior sergeant Al Windsor told the court that Kean made a "frank admission" saying that he had gone to visit his mother in Tasmania in and around 2012, and ended up staying there for the intervening period.
His criminal history was also tendered to the court listing a string of offences committed in Queensland, New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria.
Kean's lawyer said his client had remained in Tasmania as his girlfriend at the time developed bowel cancer.
Kean was convicted and fined $250 referred to SPUR with no conviction recorded.
He will be required to reappear in the Gatton Magistrate's Court on November 23, 2020, in relation to charges dating back to 1999.
