A jury has found former Australian cricketer Stuart MacGill guilty of taking part in the supply of cocaine in Sydney.
The 54-year-old faced trial over allegations he participated in the supply of a large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug, over an April 2021 introduction he made between his cocaine dealer and partner’s brother, Marino Sotiropoulos.
On the Crown’s case, the introduction amounted to setting up a drug supply because the dealer and Mr Sotiropoulos allegedly went on to organise a $330,000 deal for 1 kilogram of cocaine.
A jury in the NSW District Court heard that while MacGill’s involvement was limited to the introduction, the dealer also took part in two other alleged supplies, including one in which he handed over a vacuum-sealed bag of A4 paper instead of cash to Mr Sotiropoulos’s associates.
The dealer, referred to during proceedings as “Person A” for legal reasons, gave evidence in closed court and Crown Prosecutor Gabrielle Steedman invited jurors to accept his account, which she said was supported by other records before the court.
MacGill pleaded not guilty and his defence lawyers cast doubt on Person A’s credibility, arguing his conduct was deceptive and dishonest in multiple respects.
It took the jury about seven hours of deliberations to find MacGill not guilty of the charge of knowingly taking part in the supply of a large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug.
But he was found guilty of an alternative charge of knowingly taking part in the supply of a prohibited drug — without the large commercial supply element.
MacGill made little reaction in the dock when he learned the verdict and left court without making any comment.
MacGill spent hundreds on cocaine weekly
Person A’s “rip off” with the fake bag of cash involved an alleged deal worth $660,000 for 2 kilograms of cocaine and was linked to the kidnapping of MacGill, who said he was threatened before being driven to Bringelly by a group of men, stripped, assaulted and held against his will.
The ex-cricketer stepped into the witness box in his own defence, denying any facilitation of drug supply and telling jurors his “sole role in this debacle was to introduce Person A with Marino”.
MacGill conceded he was a recreational cocaine user — but not an addict — at the time, spending between $400 to $600 a week, occasionally up to $800, on the drug.
The Crown alleged MacGill told Person A his brother-in-law could “get good gear”, which he denied during cross-examination.
He insisted the introduction, in the car park of his Neutral Bay restaurant Aristotle’s, took mere seconds and was not “setting up anything” nor preceded by him acting as a go-between for negotiations, as alleged by the Crown.
The former spinner referred to Mr Sotiropoulos as a “dickhead” and “wannabe” who would constantly “waffle” in the restaurant about drugs and being “hard”.
The court heard Person A was not charged over the alleged drug supplies, but he was charged over items found at his granny flat including an unauthorised gun and ammunition, cocaine, 15 phones, three sets of scales, resealable bags and nearly $300,000 in cash.
He remains on parole after receiving a 50 per cent discount on his sentence, which was set at three years and three months, with a non-parole period of 20 months.
MacGill’s case is expected to return to court in May for sentence proceedings. (ABC)