NSW cocaine hot spots revealed in BOCSAR data

The places where people kept buying up cocaine throughout the Covid-19 pandemic have been revealed in new data, as magistrates and police warn they are increasingly fed up with those who partake.

Fed-up magistrates and police are flagging a cocaine crackdown in Sydney’s posh postcodes as new data reveals NSW’s Covid cocaine capitals where drug use persisted throughout the pandemic.

The Waverley Council area held the top spot, with an average of 256 cocaine use or possession charges per 100,000 people in the two years to September 21.

Its top three hot spots were Bondi, Bondi Beach and Bondi Junction, which averaged 549 charges per 100,000 people.

Bondi Beach was one of the state’s cocaine hot spots. Picture: Christian Gilles

In second and third place were the City of Sydney with 251 charges per 100,000 people and Woollahra with 114.

The City of Sydney’s top suburbs was Pyrmont – a night-life hot spot which unsurprisingly blew all other suburbs out of the water with 1084.45 per 100,000 residents – followed by Surry Hills and Darlinghurst with an average of 550.

And in Woollahra area, Double Bay took the lead with a huge 1178 per 100,000 population.

Rose Bay and Darling Point rounded out the council area’s top three, which scored an average of 419.

Here is the full list of the top 15 cocaine hot spots by the number of charges laid per 100,000 people in the latest Bureau of Crime Statistics data.

1. Waverley – 256

2. City of Sydney – 251

3. Woollahra – 113

4. Randwick – 75

5. Byron – 61

6. Edward River – 55

7. Berrigan – 45.7

8. Inner West – 40.1

9. Camden – 37.95

10. Walcha – 31.9

11. Sutherland Shire – 31.7

12. Snowy Monaro regional – 31.3

13. Cootamundra-Gundagai – 31.15

14. Moree Plains – 30.15

15. Oberon – 27.75

BOCSAR, which provided the figures, noted areas with small populations can be significantly affected by a modest number of incidents and therefore record a misleadingly high crime rate.

It also cautioned that regions with high visitor numbers, such as Sydney’s city centre, should be viewed in context.

But when it comes to Waverley – the cocaine capital of NSW – magistrates and police have warned they are fed up with prolific cocaine use in the area.

Magistrate Jacqueline Milledge of Waverley Local Court has grilled several men caught with cocaine in the eastern suburbs in recent weeks.

Matteo Santabarbara at Waverley Local Court.

In sentencing Matteo Santabarbara – caught red-handed buying cocaine in a Bondi Junction back alley – Ms Milledge said courts would have to start getting tougher.

“The courts are growing tired of people like you who resort to drugs for whatever reason,” she said.

“You’ve gotta brace yourself because life is full of ups and downs and it’s very clear you’re otherwise a very decent young man, but I’ve said a million times, it’s a dirty industry. People are dying on the other side of the world for this industry.”

Santabarbara was charged with possessing a prohibited drug and also fined for breaching a public health order.

Ms Milledge said she was prepared not to convict him and instead release him on a six-month bond, a decision she said was “worth gold”.

NSW Police conducted major drug operations related to so-called dial-a-dealers in Sydney during lockdown.

During November to December 2020 alone, officers seized more than $170,000 worth of illicit drugs, with cocaine among the most prevalent.

During that short time frame, they arrested 137 people on drug charges.

Here are some of the cases that came before Sydney’s courts.

WARREN GINSBERG

Sydney socialite and top real estate agent Warren Ginsberg ran out of chances to avoid a criminal record on his third cocaine possession bust.

Ginsberg, 33, was charged with cocaine possession after plain clothes police caught him red handed making a transaction in Bondi on August 19 last year.

The court heard the Ray White Double Bay director was nursing a broken heart after the end of a long-term relationship when he decided to buy the two bags, containing 1.3g of cocaine, for $600.

Warren Ginsberg. Picture: Instagram

Ginsberg pleaded guilty at Waverley Local Court on September 14, where Magistrate Carolyn Huntsman recorded a conviction.

“You are a personality type who strives to achieve and work hard, and you were under considerable stress at the time,” Ms Huntsman said.

“I think after what you’ve been through this time around there’s no way you’d put yourself through this again.”

Ginsberg had previously received a non-conviction and a bond for cocaine possession in 2007, and a fine without conviction for the same offence in 2010.

He had intended to appeal his conviction in the NSW District Court but abandoned his efforts last week.

KRISTIN FISHER

Eastern suburbs eyebrow guru Kristin Fisher vowed to “never” do cocaine again after her arrest in the middle of Sydney’s 2021 Covid lockdown.

Fisher, 36, was in the middle of a deal when her dealer illegally overtook another vehicle – attracting the attention of nearby police.

Officers found two bags of cocaine at her feet when they stopped her dealer’s vehicle on Curlewis St, Bondi on July 17.

Kristin Fisher. Picture: Toby Zerna

Fisher was initially convicted and fined $550 for cocaine possession in her absence after she accidentally missed her first court date.

Magistrate Ross Hudson ultimately quashed her conviction after the matter was reopened and instead sentenced her to a conditional release order.

She was also fined $1000 for breaching Covid-19 public health orders.

Kristin Fisher.

“Notwithstanding the years and years to build your reputation, it takes seconds to destroy it,” Mr Hudson told Fisher.

“Hopefully you can now reflect on that.”

JUSTIN HORO

Former NRL winger Justin Horo received a stern warning after he was caught with cocaine and a rolled note at a popular eastern suburbs pub.

Ex-Manly Sea Eagle Horo, 34, pleaded guilty to prohibited drug possession after police caught him with a rolled $100 note outside a bathroom at the Golden Sheaf in Double Bay on March 20 last year.

When officers checked his pockets, they found a small amount of cocaine, which Horo said he was planning to take to “sober himself up” after a day of drinking.

Justin Horo.

Magistrate Michael Allen spared Horo a conviction and instead sentenced him to a 12-month conditional release order.

“It is sadly prevalent in our community and a reflection on the decadence that is influencing the streets of this city,” Mr Allen said.

Horo during his Manly days. Picture: Gregg Porteous

However, Mr Allen also blasted the manner in which detailed information of Horo’s offending had wound up in the media prior to his appearance in court.

“I do not find it in any way in the public interest, particularly before it comes before a court,” Mr Allen said.