Amy Dargusch: Sunshine Coast mum in huge ice, GHB scheme

A Sunshine Coast mum-of-four has been caught up in a dark web of ice and GHB trafficking, attempting to involve her children.

A middle-aged mother-of-four was a key player in a massive Sunshine Coast methamphetamine and GHB trafficking ring, a court has heard.

Point Arkwright woman Amy Louise Dargusch, 42, pleaded guilty in Brisbane Supreme Court on Thursday to trafficking in the two drugs.

The court heard Dargusch was a central cog in the network, being charged alongside two other kingpins whose names cannot be revealed at this stage as their matters are yet to be finalised.

Dargusch trafficked in ice and GHB mainly, but also cannabis, MDMA and cocaine, between March 24 and September 17, 2019, a period just shy of six months, at Caloundra and elsewhere.

The court heard her trafficking comprised two components.

Firstly, she was a street-level dealer of the two drugs, selling drugs to her adult children among other customers.

Point Arkwright mum Amy Louise Dargusch, 42. Picture: Alex Treacy

She also attempted to engage one of her sons as an agent selling MDMA, the court heard.

However, details about the extent of her business, such as how many customers, what profit was made and what amounts were sold remain unknown by police due to the fact her trafficking was revealed by telephone intercepts of others.

In addition to her own business, Dargusch acted as a key offsider to two major targets of the operation, the second component of her trafficking.

The court heard she referred customers to the duo, occasionally helped them source wholesale amounts of ice and GHB, collected outstanding debts on their behalf and conducted deliveries for them.

A search warrant executed on her Point Arkwright address in October 2019 failed to uncover any illicit substances or other evidence but she was nevertheless charged on the strength of the telecommunications evidence.

Defence counsel David Crews told the court his client’s issues with addiction stretched back to 2010 when, in her previous role as a disability support worker, she was attacked by a client.

She was prescribed an opioid for her injuries which she became dependant on.

Dargusch kicked that habit, but in 2015, Mr Crews said, the father of one of her children brought ice into the household for a party.

She became addicted again and by 2017 her addiction had spiralled out of control, the court heard.

Mr Crews said her client had since gotten clean again and was a full-time carer for her elderly mother.

Justice Thomas Bradley sentenced Dargusch to three years’ imprisonment with immediate court-ordered parole.