John Nikolic awake and talking after drug overdose in Fiji

NEAR death after downing an unknown substance as police raided his luxury yacht, former Victorian horse trainer John Nikolic has reportedly woken from a coma.

John Nikolic and Yvette Nikolic on the yacht before the raid. Picture: Supplied

WHEN John and Yvette Nikolic’s luxury yacht was raided in Fiji, the couple shared a “loving farewell” before John allegedly drank a potentially deadly drug cocktail that left him fighting for his life.

Almost a fortnight on, the former Victorian horse trainer has reportedly woken a coma, and is alert and talking, in Lautoka Hospital.

“I can confirm that Mr Nikolic is out of the intensive care unit,” his Australian lawyer, Jason Murakami told The Herald Sun.

Fiji Border Police commanding officer Pita Keni also confirmed Mr Nikolic is on the way to recovery, and is expected to be charged in coming days.

Yvette Nikolic faced Lautoka High Court on drug possession and importation charges on Wednesday, where her lawyer said she would be seeking bail, and asked for some personal items taken in the raid be returned, The Fiji Times reported.

. The matter was adjourned for further mention in Lautoka High Court on July 24.

Ms Nikolic remains on remand in Lautoka Women’s Corrections Centre.

It’s understood her requests to be allowed to see John have been denied.

On June 21, as police swarmed the SV Shenanigans, the pair, who Fijian police allege are part of a $20 million drug ring, reportedly embraced each other at Denarau Marina before the former Melbourne horse trainer collapsed and his wife was taken away by police, a witness has told The Herald Sun.

Until his woke from his coma, Mr Nikolic had been gravely ill in intensive care after being stretchered, unmoving and silent, into an ambulance following the raid.

The raid allegedly uncovered a haul of cocaine and ecstasy, as well as ammunition and firearms.

John’s mother, Karen, and brother, high-profile jockey Danny Nikolic, have lashed out at the media between visits to John in hospital, demanding privacy when approached by broadcast journalists.

They were in court for Yvette’s most recent appearance.

“Loving farewell”: Yvette and John Nikolic. Picture: Facebook

The Australian captain of a boat moored near the SV Shenanigans told News Corp of the “loving farewell” he saw between the couple as he witnessed the raid.

“The saddest realisation was … when they realised that she was going to go one way and he was going to go the other, the embrace and all that, between a husband and wife, that was, to me, sad,” he said.

Fiji’s Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) says 13 bars of cocaine worth up to $20 million, 65 ecstasy tablets and $20,000 of undeclared cash were found on board SV Shenanigans when it was raided on June 21.

Two guns and 97 rounds of ammunition were also discovered.

The Nikolics bought the yacht last year, planning to sail the Pacific Islands on what they called the “adventure of a lifetime”.

Maps of their sailing adventure and a social media posts show they travelled to Colombia in South America, to Panama, and then set sail across the Pacific.

Before the raid, the Nikolics had posted plenty of pictures sharing their adventures at sea as they sailed from South America en route to Queensland, predicting “good things were on their way”.

Originally published as John Nikolic awake and talking after drug overdose in Fiji