Peter Ninnes jailed for role in drug syndicate masterminded by Joshua Toole, brother of former police minister

The last of four men to be sentenced for a role in a large-scale drug operation which included mastermind Joshua Toole, the brother of the former NSW Police Minister, has now learned his fate.

The drugs recovered during the large-scale syndicate busted by police, led by Joshua Toole, brother of the former NSW Police Minister Paul Toole. Picture: Supplied/NSW Police.

The last man standing out of a group of four men already behind bars for their role in a large-scale drug operation, masterminded by the brother of former Police Minister Paul Toole, has been the only one to escape full-time jail.

Peter Ninnes, 45, was under the direction of “facilitator and employer” Joshua Toole when he made a ‘dead drop’ of almost 140 grams of ‘ice’ on August 11, 2022, at Belmont North and placed it in a McDonald’s cup before he collected $32,500 in cash, a court has heard.

But little did Toole know, he was under the watchful eye of Strike Force Great detectives investigating the supply of methamphetamine across the Lake Macquarie and Newcastle regions between March and October that year.

And an officer had also infiltrated the covert drug operation over a six-month period to ultimately uncover the dealings and lead to numerous arrests.

Court documents revealed Ninnes and other “couriers” or “front line individuals” would communicate with Toole via the encrypted messaging app “Threma” to co-ordinate the drug deals.

Peter Ninnes, pictured outside Newcastle Court, escaped jail time. Pic: Amy Ziniak

Joshua Toole, the brother of Police Minister Paul Toole, was jailed for being the mastermind of a drug syndicate in the Hunter. Picture: Facebook

The court heard they would be involved in retrieving money and providing information to the undercover officer where the drugs were left at various locations.

The investigation would then see Toole arrested during a vehicle stop on October 12 before properties at Belmont North, Nords Wharf and Wadalba were raided and police would seize more than 2kg of meth — with an estimated potential street value of $2 million.

Ninnes was arrested at the Belmont North property where police located 107 grams of meth.

The 45-year-old pleaded guilty to drug supply, knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime and deem supply.

Former Police Minister Paul Toole was not accused of any wrongdoing or prior knowledge of his brother’s offending.

In Newcastle District Court on Tuesday, it was heard Ninnes had relapsed back into using and selling drugs after marital difficulties and mental health issues.

Joshua Toole, brother of former NSW Police Minister Paul Toole (left) leaving Newcastle court with his solicitor Drew Hamilton before he was jailed. Picture: Amy Ziniak

Despite the Crown Prosecutor pointing out it was not a “street level deal” Ninnes had been involved in, Judge Roy Ellis said Toole was using Ninnes as a “sucker”.

He also noted a genuine letter of apology from the 45-year-old, his willingness to engage with his support network and his current mental health diagnosis which had helped him with his treatment moving forward.

He was sentenced to a three-year jail term which will be served by way of intensive correction order (ICO) in the community with a condition he must abstain from taking any illegal drugs.

After he pleaded guilty to one count of supply a large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug, Toole was sentenced in February last year to a maximum of six years jail for his role in over half a dozen drug deals involving over 1.8kg of meth in exchange for over $400,000.

David Bui of Wadalba was also given jail time for his role. Picture: Facebook

Tahley Anne Partland, of Wadalba, the girlfriend of Bui, was also charged for knowingly dealing with proceeds of crime. Picture: Facebook

That same day Paul Colvin, 43, from Nords Wharf, was jailed for three years and six months with pleas of guilty to two counts of drug supply and knowingly dealing with proceeds of crime.

Then in March, David Bui, 44, who pleaded guilty to supplying 1.4kg of meth on ten occasions, was jailed for four years.

Bui’s pregnant partner at the time Tahley Anne Partland, who shared a home with him on the Central Coast, also pleaded guilty to one count of knowingly deal with the proceeds of crime – that being $124,000 in cash she had taken inside from a plant pot on four occasions, all the while being watched by police.

She was sentenced to an 18-month ICO.