A Queensland judge suspended a two-year prison sentence for a 20-year-old man convicted of dealing MDMA, explicitly citing his youthful appearance and the risk this could pose to him in custody. Justice Soraya Ryan told Hamish Craig Larnach at Brisbane Supreme Court that he did not look his age, and that her comments reflected concerns about the dangers he would face in prison. The case has drawn attention for its unusual reasoning, with the judge's remarks focused as much on Larnach's physical appearance as on the offence itself.

Larnach was arrested in October 2024, aged 18 at the time, after police spotted him advertising MDMA on the encrypted app Telegram and arranged an undercover purchase. He sold an officer just over eight grams of the drug at 72 per cent purity for around $700, and a subsequent raid on his home uncovered a further 11 grams of MDMA, a cannabis vape, clip-seal bags and digital scales. He pleaded guilty to one count of supplying a dangerous drug and two counts of possession, and was ultimately given a wholly suspended two-year sentence, with the court also hearing about his clean record, abstinence from drugs, stable employment and strong support network.