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AAP
AAP
National
Rex Martinich

Bail refused over second alleged carjacking in six days

A woman told a judge she pulled a knife on a taxi driver because she feared for her safety. (Tracey Nearmy/AAP PHOTOS)

A woman accused of armed robbery and hijacking a taxi just six days after being convicted of a similar offence has been refused bail.

April Faith Alice Power-Smith, 24, of Leichhardt, appeared via videolink in Brisbane Supreme Court on Thursday and represented herself in her bail application.

Power-Smith has spent the previous four months on remand after being charged with one count each of deprivation of liberty and armed robbery in company.

The court heard Power-Smith on September 5, 2023 at Ipswich, west of Brisbane, allegedly used a flick knife to threaten a 37-year-old male taxi driver.

The taxi driver told police that Power-Smith produced the weapon and demanded he drive through Ipswich after he refused to take her and three other passengers to an additional stop.

"You are going to take us. I know how to hijack a car," Power-Smith allegedly said.

After the driver failed to alert a passing police car using his headlights, Power-Smith and her companions allegedly demanded money and took $40 before exiting the taxi.

On August 30, 2023 Power-Smith had been released from court on a suspended sentence after being convicted of threatening a driver with a metal pole and stealing his vehicle.

Crown prosecutor Sam Knight on Thursday opposed granting bail, saying Power-Smith presented an unacceptable risk of reoffending.

Power-Smith told the court that she pulled out the knife only because she feared for her safety.

"I'm not a bad person. I made a bad decision," Power-Smith said.

She said CCTV from inside the taxi would prove she did not take part in the robbery but she and prosecutors had yet to receive a copy of the video.

Justice Tom Sullivan said he had to make a decision based on the material before him.

"Nonetheless, you produced a flick knife, opened it and pointed it at somebody," he said.

Justice Sullivan denied bail and told Power-Smith she should talk to a legal representative and obtain a copy of the taxi CCTV video before applying again.

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