Red tractor escapee pleads his case in Cairns court
Prison break
More details have emerged about the bizarre case of the prisoner who managed to avoid authorities for a month after escaping from Lotus Glen jail on a red tractor during a court case this week.
Michael Graeme Rennie, 44, actually became eligible for parole in April, 2025, but escaped two months later on June 1 after not being immediately released - his full sentence was due to run to mid 2028.
He then holed up in a remote camp in Cow Bay across the Daintree River for a month without committing any further crimes.
A late-night police raid led to Rennie’s arrest without incident, and he soon told them where the tractor was hidden.
During a hearing at Cairns District Court this week, Rennie pleaded guilty to escaping lawful custody and the unlawful use of a motor vehicle.
Judge Dean Morzone extended his sentence by 10 months after the new convictions, but he is still eligible to apply for parole immediately.
Rennie was originally serving a six-year sentence at Lotus Glen Correctional Centre near Mareeba for a range of offences involving assault, theft, drugs, traffic offences and weapons.
Described as 174cm tall, 56kg, lightly built, with a fair complexion, fair hair and blue eyes, he has a number of distinctive markings on his body including multiple dog bites and scars on his left arm. He also has a range of tattoos including a gun on his left shoulder, a dragon and skull on his right shoulder and a clown with a gun on his left ribs.
Rennie escaped the low-security prison on a red Massey tractor, believed to be worth about $100,000, with an attached front bucket.
On Monday, June 9, a Newsport reader noticed an abandoned red tractor just south of Wonga Beach with a bright yellow police notice on it, but police said the next day that it was a broken-down vehicle belonging to a local farmer.
Rennie was recaptured at 12.45am on Wednesday, June 2, at Cow Bay.
