Jail over bid to poison homeless

A former north Queensland council worker has been sentenced to 12 months' jail for trying to poison homeless people in a park.

Neville Douglas Welsh had been accused of deliberately leaving bottles laced with methylated spirits and weed killer around Townsville's Dean Park.

Groups of homeless people were known to congregate in the area.

The former Townsville City Council worker was sentenced to 12 months' jail by Judge Anthony Rafter on Wednesday.

This will be suspended after six months for an operational period of two years, the Townsville Bulletin reports.

A Townsville District Court jury had found the 65-year-old guilty of attempting to injure by noxious substance the day before.

During the time of the incident, Welsh had been employed as a street cleaner.