A Warwick man was shocked to be fined $1,000 by a magistrate for possessing less than a quarter gram of cannabis.

Craig Stapff, 53, pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court to possessing 0.23g of the controlled drug in an incident on October 26 last year.

The court heard that officers travelling in an unmarked vehicle were driving along St John’s Road when they smelled burning cannabis and noticed that the man driving the car in front of them appeared to be smoking.

They pulled Stapff over and, upon a search of his vehicle, discovered a partially smoked, hand-rolled cigarette, which the defendant admitted contained cannabis. Appearing in court yesterday, Stapff apologised for his actions, saying he used cannabis to treat his asthma.

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo fined Stapff $1,000 for the offence, causing Stapff to say: “What? Is there no justice here?

“I mean, $1,000 for 0.23g of marijuana? How do you justify that?”

Mr Tokunbo responded that the fine was based on the defendant’s past drug convictions, adding: “If you don’t like it you can take it elsewhere. I’m saying that based on your history, I’m fining you $1,000.

“Nine times out of ten, you will think twice about using cannabis again.”

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