A CONVICTED drug trafficker once dubbed the 'Mrs Big of the drug world' is back behind bars after being denied bail on fresh drug allegations.

Nana Puscas, 57, was arrested on Wednesday after a police raid netted almost half a kilogram of heroin at her Ormeau Road home.

Police also arrested 52-year-old Nicolae Tufis from NSW, who they allege was restocking her supplies.

Both suspects have been charged with trafficking, supplying and possessing a dangerous drug.

It was a similar scene to 16 years ago when Puscas was sentenced on drug charges.

In 1994 she was sentenced to a record 20-year jail term for trafficking heroin after a covert police operation nabbed her and defacto husband, Frank Onea.

The former Romanian refugees, who were dubbed the 'Mr and Mrs Bigs' of the state drug scene, were both jailed for selling 211g of pure heroin with a street value of almost $600,000.

Puscas pleaded guilty to the charges.

At Onea's trial the court was told the couple lived the high life on the Gold Coast, simultaneously running a Southport restaurant, The Blue Danube, and one of Queensland's biggest heroin drug operations.

Their world collapsed in September 1992 when they were arrested by police who were led to stashes of heroin buried in a Runaway Bay park.

Puscas was released after five years and has been on parole since, until her arrest on Wednesday.

Yesterday the court was told the raid on her Ormeau home came after six months of covert surveillance by local and state detectives in Operation Ice Allergy.

Police alleged Puscas was a known heroin trafficker in the region, with clients in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast, and that Tufis was her interstate supplier.

In the raid, police allegedly found 112.4g of heroin in a black camera case in Tufis's pocket and $140,000 in cash and 325.5g of heroin in Puscas's cupboard.

Police prosecutor Senior Constable Myee Arandale said Puscas volunteered the drugs' hiding spot when questioned by police.

The court was told Puscas admitted during a recorded interview that she had been supplying three regular customers and sourcing drugs from Tufis for six months.

Potts Lawyers solicitor Mark Williams sought bail for Puscas and Tufis and argued the evidence had not been established as the substances had yet to be tested.

His applications were strongly opposed by Sen-Constable Arandale who cited Puscas's history and parole breach.

Sen-Constable Arandale said both were an unacceptable risk of flight and reoffending if granted bail.

Magistrate Dean Wilkinson refused bail for both defendants and remanded them in custody until a committal hearing in Southport on February 7, 2011.

A BOAT driver whose girlfriend fell overboard and was hacked to death by a propeller on the Gold Coast has been fined $2000 after being found guilty of unsafe operation of a ship but not guilty of causing her death.

Russell Dudley Smith, 58, hung his head as the Southport District Court jury returned their verdict after just two hours of deliberation.

During the six day trial the jury was told Ms Crellin died on December 14, 2006 after falling from the back of Mr Smith's boat during a Christmas party cruise in the Coomera River.

The jury determined this morning that Smith should have warned and supervised his passengers of the dangers of standing on the duckboard while the boat was in motion.

However they also decided he could not have foreseen that her fall would lead to her being swept under the boat and into the propellers, fatally wounding her.

Judge Clive Wall QC said he was minded to give a wholly-suspended jail sentence but his hands were effectively tied by precedent.

Under the Transport Operations (Marine Safety) Act the maximum penalty for unsafe operation of a ship is 12 months in jail or a $5000 fine.

A P-PLATER driving a car jammed with eight intoxicated teenagers almost killed his friends when the car overturned at Pacific Pines.

Passenger Mark Bates were hanging out of the window when the Holden Jackaroo flipped and was trapped between the car and the road as the vehicle slid 15 metres.

Against doctors' expectations, the 17-year-old woke from his coma but today lives with brain damage and ongoing trauma.

Yesterday 19-year-old driver Jake Davis escaped jail but was sentenced in Southport Magistrates Court to 12 months probation and 150 hours community service for driving without due care and attention.

He was banned from driving for two years and convicted but not further punished for three additional charges of driving without P-plates, driving a car with protruding body parts and disobeying provisional licence regulations.

Under the regulations, P-platers are allowed to carry only one passenger under the age of 21 when driving after 11pm and before 5am.

The court was told Davis had nine people in the eight-seater car on the night of September 13 last year.

Senior Constable Murdoch Clarke told the court police calculated the Jackaroo was doing 38km/h when it made a sharp turn on the roundabout intersecting Bowley Street and Brockman Way at 12.16am.

Solicitor Paul Hamilton for Davis said his client had been traumatised by the accident and received psychological counselling over the injuries caused to his friend.

"It's been a huge wake-up call for him," he said.

Outside court Mr Bates' mother Angela Whittle said the accident had destroyed her son's life.

"Now he is a totally different person and his dreams for the future have been dashed," she said.

SUNDAY nights at Fishos were known for their live music, lax dress codes and good times -- until a man died on the boardwalk out the front.

Fisherman's Wharf Tavern hosted big crowds and steel fixer Terii Tararo ended up there on May 18, 2008, with three mates and about 1000 other people out for a drink.

Up to 20 security guards were on duty that night and police had arrangements in place with the venue to pick up troublemakers.

So when 21-year-old Mr Tararo, who was wearing a hoodie and bandanna, punched bouncer Morne Ricardo Lombaard at the front door most people probably thought they knew what would happen next.

But as a Supreme Court jury found yesterday, while no one planned to kill Mr Tararo as they kicked, punched and choked him, the actions of the security guards were excessive.

The Brisbane jury acquitted Lombaard, 30, of murdering Mr Tararo but found him guilty of manslaughter while Denis Legradi, 23, was found guilty of manslaughter after a murder charge against him was dropped during the trial.

Both were sentenced to seven years jail yesterday.

A third bouncer, Naeroa Petera Tepaukonui, 37, was acquitted of manslaughter but found guilty of assaulting Mr Tararo's friend Colin Loseby and sentenced to three months jail, wholly suspended.

Outside court Mr Tararo's mother Tira Tararo and uncle Stewart Kaiaruna said they hoped the case would remind bouncers of the law.

Mrs Tararo said despite the outcome, her strong Christian faith allowed her to forgive the men.

"I can (forgive) but I hope they don't do it again. My son is gone," she said.

Mr Kaiaruna said that there was 'no excuse' for what happened.

"It's a lesson to be exercised out there, treat everybody fairly and to do their job according to what they are supposed to do," he said.

"For a mother it may be hard for her to answer but coming from a Christian belief community, we have feeling for them and we feel sorry for the families of the accused."

Mrs Tararo was due to fly back to the Cook Islands yesterday but stayed to hear the verdict while Terri's father, who had been in court during the trial, was not present.

During the four-week trial the jury heard Mr Tararo and his mates had been drinking beers in Mr Loseby's Arundel garage before heading out to Fishos.

When refused entry to Fishos, Mr Tararo, who weighed 130kg and had several heart problems, went 'toe to toe' with security guards until he was brought down.

Witnesses said Lombaard, a South African, got very angry and acted like an 'animal', kicking and punching Mr Tararo.

Legradi straddled Mr Tararo and applied a choke-hold while other guards held his arms and legs for up to 10 minutes.

When police arrived Mr Tararo was either dead or very close to it and by the time the ambulance got to the Main Beach premises, Mr Tararo could not be saved.

Justice Martin Daubney said the jail terms should serve as 'deterrents to those who seek to cloak themselves with some sort of quasi-authority in the security industry'.

"Your engagement at the hotel was that of security provider. You were not a private police force. You were not some sort of paid militia," he said to the men.

A RAID at a Beechmont home has allegedly netted 3.6kg of methamphetamine with a potential street value of $3 million, Southport Magistrates Court was told.

Jason Hinton, 31, Dean 'Dino' Spizzirri, 53, and Kim Murphy, 30, have each been charged with producing a dangerous drug.

Mr Spizzirri, who police allege has links to the Finks Motorcycle Club, appeared in Southport Magistrates Court on Monday.

He did not apply for bail and was remanded in custody.

Alleged co-offender Mr Hinton appeared in court yesterday and was granted bail on the condition he post a $50,000 surety and have no contact with any outlaw motorcycle gang members.

But he was remanded in custody overnight after failing to post his surety by the close of business yesterday.

The court was told the drugs had been sent away for purity testing. However, documents tendered to court estimated the haul to have a potential street value between $1.8 million and $3 million.

Mr Hinton's solicitor, Mark Williams, said his client was a Southport car dealer and his partner was due to give birth to their first child this week.

He said his client denied having any links to outlaw motorcycle gangs.

"He is not a club member and he has never been a club member and he has no reason to be in contact with any club member," he said.

Mr Williams said his client was not likely to reoffend if released on bail.

Ms Murphy, a beautician from Beechmont, also remained in custody last night.

Her bail application was adjourned until today to allow police to cancel an Irish passport for which she had recently applied.

Mr Williams, who also represented Ms Murphy, said the drugs were allegedly found at her rented home but she was 'on the periphery of the offending'.

All three defendants will reappear in court again on June 1, when it is expected a committal hearing date will be set.

The large quantity of drugs was allegedly seized by detectives on Saturday night during a raid of Ms Murphy's Beechmont home.

Police will allege the raid was a result of a lengthy investigation which was conducted by Task Force Hydra -- the anti-outlaw motorcycle gang arm of the Queensland Police Service.

A WOMAN is suing for $140,000 in personal injury damages after one of her high heels got caught on the edge of the step of a Gold Coast football club's courtesy bus.

Fiona Purchase, 53, filed the claim against the Southport Australian Rules Football Club Pty Ltd in the Supreme Court in Brisbane last week.

Ms Purchase, of Brisbane, claims she went to the club via the courtesy bus and arrived about 7pm on August 9, 2008, when she tripped on the raised metal edge of a step and injured her back and left ankle.

"When attempting to disembark from the said bus, the heel of the plaintiff's shoe caught on the raised edging on a step of the said bus," the claim states.

The claim also says afterwards the bus driver got a hammer and flattened down the metal piece.

Ms Purchase claims the club owed a duty of care to patrons on the bus, including while getting on and off.

The majority of the claim, $100,000, is for future loss of income.

The claim is one of a growing variety of actions for personal injury lodged this year, with very few ever coming to trial thanks to a system designed to settle disputes out of court.

Not associated with the above claim but speaking generally on the industry, Potts Lawyers litigation lawyer Craig DoRozario said most personal injury cases were now settled in compulsory and confidential conferences.

"What you see in court is the tip of the iceberg," he said.

"The vast majority of all claims, like 99 per cent, will not ever get to court because they are settled and that is the way the system has been set up."

Mr DoRozario said negotiations between sides continued even if the first conference failed, usually the settled amount was less than the original claim and the result was confidential.

"A lot of claimants would love to come out and say how much they got or did not get for an injury but it is just not possible," he said.

Mr DoRozario said while case numbers seemed to be steady, people injured were now more likely to seek advice.

"People are much more aware of their rights now," he said.

Jim Stokes, 23, of Surfers Paradise, was granted bail in Southport Magistrates Court yesterday on strict conditions, including that he live with his mother, abide by a 9pm curfew and stay out of the Surfers Paradise nightclub precinct.

During the application, magistrate Robert Quinlan asked Mr Stokes' mother if she agreed to make sure her son would be home before 9pm.

"I'll tie him up," she announced to the court.

Acting Senior Sergeant Brian Cazzulino had opposed bail due to the seriousness of the allegations.

He said police allege Mr Stokes approached a man who was talking to a woman in Cocktails and Dreams nightclub around 12.25am yesterday and produced the gun.

"He walked up and pulled the gun out from his pants. He displayed it in the clear view of other patrons and pointed the barrel at the man's chest with his finger on the trigger," he said.

"He allegedly told the man to '(expletive) off ... or else'."

Act Sen-Sergeant Cazzulino said Mr Stokes allegedly told the complainant that it was a real gun.

Mr Stokes has been charged with going armed to cause fear, possession of a weapon while under the influence of liquor and common assault.

His solicitor Mark Williams from Potts Lawyers said his client had consumed an entire bottle of rum and was on medication.

He said his client had been troubled by a relationship which had recently ended.

Mr Williams said the woman at the nightclub was not Mr Stokes' ex-girlfriend.

"He allegedly got himself intoxicated and committed this offence of stupidity," he said.

The matter has been listed for a committal hearing on July 21.

A FATHER and son say they are innocent despite police allegedly finding 40kg of cannabis at their Gaven home and business premises.

Police said a Christmas Eve raid on a home in Coolibah Drive netted the drugs, worth an estimated $420,000, as well as $105,920 in cash and 40 rounds of .22 calibre ammunition.

John Francis Ward, 65 and his son Stephen John Ward, 29 were granted bail at Southport Magistrates Court yesterday after being charged with possessing drugs, drug paraphernalia, illegal proceeds and two counts of possessing explosives.

Police prosecutor Senior-Constable Nillin Rumbel-Sims told the court police detected a strong smell of drugs in the house during the 1.50pm raid.

The court was told bagged and loose cannabis and cash were found strewn throughout the home including on the kitchen bench, in a secret bathroom compartment and stuffed beneath a fish tank.

She said police also found electronic scales and lists of names and transactions.

After learning Stephen Ward also owned Gold Coast Tinnie Hire and Fish the Coast Charters, police searched those premises and found more cannabis, an extendable baton, a bong, four bullets, $3700 in cash and white powder stashed in two gun safes the court was told.

Snr-Constable Rumbel-Sims said both men refused to give a statement and had been held in custody since Christmas Eve.

Solicitor Adam Dwyer said his clients 'strenuously denied' the allegations and were prepared to contest the charges.

Snr-Constable Rumbel-Sims opposed bail saying she believed the father and son could fail to appear but Mr Dwyer argued the Ward family had strong Gold Coast connections and were prepared to pay a surety.

Magistrate Brian Kilmartin said despite the pair's lack of criminal history they could pose a flight risk.

"The charges are serious and the weight of evidence is almost overwhelming," he said and they could face up to two to three-year sentences.

Mr Kilmartin granted them bail on the condition the family post a $30,000 surety or $15,000 each.

They were ordered to report to the Southport police daily and to stay away from international departure points. John Ward was also ordered to surrender his passport.

The Wards will appear in the Southport Magistrates Court on July 21 for a committal hearing.

THE teenager charged with stabbing her best friend in the neck will be free to fly back to New Zealand tomorrow while the glassing victim spends Christmas in hospital undergoing surgery.

The parents of 19-year-old Danielle Armstrong were yesterday frantically opening Australian bank accounts and transferring $20,000 bail money from New Zealand so their daughter could be released from custody to fly back to Auckland with them tomorrow.

While the nursing student will celebrate Christmas in the comfort of her home, her best friend and fellow nursing student, Tracy Edmonds, will spend it on the operating table trying to repair extensive nerve damage caused during an alleged argument between the pair last week.

Ms Edmonds was rushed to Gold Coast Hospital last Thursday night after she was allegedly struck with a wine glass by Ms Armstrong at the Azzurra Hotel in Surfers Paradise about 10pm.

She suffered a 10cm deep gash to her neck, nerve damage to her neck and chest, cuts to her eyebrow, has no feeling in her neck and required 30 stitches.

She will also undergo surgery at PA Hospital to repair the nerve damage.

Yesterday, Southport Magistrates Court heard Ms Armstrong acted in self-defence.

Defence lawyer Paul Hamilton     said the girls got into a heated verbal argument on the balcony of the ninth floor of the hotel.

"My understanding is she has said she was approached by the complainant and pushed out because she thought she was going over the edge," he said.

Magistrate Gary Finger granted bail despite concerns by the prosecution Ms Armstrong would not return to face court once she was back on New Zealand soil and fears she would 'interfere with a witness'.

The prosecution said Ms Armstrong had repeatedly asked while in custody 'what would happen if the complainant did not want to lay charges'.

"She should not be in a situation where she should be punished because she doesn't live in this country," argued Mr Hamilton. "She is a young, hardworking woman ... her parents said they will ensure her obligations to return to Australia for court.

Magistrate Finger granted bail and set down a committal hearing for July 19, saying 'my belief is she will return'.

But he released her with a stern warning. "The process of extradition is not a pleasant experience," he said.

FINKS bikie Sacha Kahled Nachouki has been ordered to hand over a $50,000 cash surety to the court before he was allowed bail on charges of fraud and extortion.

The 37-year-old Paradise Point man is facing charges of extortion, fraud and failing to answer questions at an Australian Crime Commission hearing.

Mr Nachouki was charged over threatening a man at Surfers Paradise and attempting to dishonestly obtain $280,000 from the man.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Greg Overton opposed bail and tendered a photograph of Mr Nachouki posing with a gun.

Solicitor Mark Williams from Potts Lawyers said the photograph was taken on his client's mobile phone and sent to his friends as a joke.

Magistrate Michael O'Driscoll said he would grant bail on strict conditions including a curfew and a surety of $50,000 cash.

Mr Nachouki's extortion and fraud matters have been set down for a committal hearing on May 31.