The man accused of shooting three people dead on remote farmland in North Queensland had his gun license revoked by police more than a decade ago, court documents reveal.
But Bogie resident Darryl Young, who is charged with murdering Maree and Mervyn Schwarz and Graham Tighe, successfully appealed the police decision the same year his license was cancelled, claiming he needed it for his “business”.
Documents from the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) reveal Mr Young was first granted a gun license in 1992.
It allowed him to hold four rifles and two shotguns.
In 2010 Queensland Police refused his bid to renew the licence. They argued it was “not in the public interest” for him to hold a license.
In Mr Young’s appeal, he claimed he needed the guns to control feral animals on a property in Gladstone.
“There is no were (sic) in the laws of the gun laws that I have broken to stop me having a gun license,” Young says in his application.
“I need my gun license for my business. I hope the Tribunal over turns (sic) the decision so I can have my license.”
The court ruled in favor of Mr Young, rejecting police arguments to refuse the renewal.
Last week, in an unrelated matter, Mr Young was charged with three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
Police allege the 59-year-old killed the Schwarzes and Mr Tighe at a property in Bogie, near Bowen, during an arranged meeting at the boundary line.
Graham’s brother Ross Tighe was also shot in the stomach but survived, alerting police to what had occurred.
Mr Young, who has been remanded in custody, briefly appeared before Proserpine Magistrates Court on Monday.
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