Latrell Mitchell to step away from police project tackling youth crime
Police have sidelined Latrell Mitchell as the face of a program aimed at tackling the regional youth crime crisis in the wake of NRL star’s white substance scandal.
Police & Courts
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News.
NRL star Latrell Mitchell has been sidelined by police as a face of their efforts to curb the state’s youth crime crisis in the wake of his white substance scandal.
Mitchell was unveiled as one of the inspirations of Operation Pathfinder earlier this year, the joint initiative from the state government, the NRL and NSW Police, and was due to make multiple trips to regional towns this year.
But in the wake of a photo of him hunched over a white substance in a Dubbo motel over the weekend going viral, it is understood Mitchell has been told he will not be able to associate in the youth project — at least until after the matter is dealt with by the NRL Integrity Unit.
“He (Latrell) understands, he knows the rules,” a source said. “It will be a temporary step aside, at least until the matters have been fully dealt with.
“As much as police love working with them, there’s always a level of risk associated with NRL players.”
The strong line taken by NSW Police was compounded by Mitchell being hit with a breach notice by the NRL, with the governing body claiming he has broken the game’s code of conduct.
The NRL Integrity Unit have spent this week investigating the incident, which occurred while Mitchell was in Dubbo for a women’s football clinic.
The investigation was conducted in conjunction with the Rabbitohs, and saw Mitchell interviewed on Tuesday.
“The National Rugby League today issued South Sydney Rabbitohs player Latrell Mitchell with a Breach Notice alleging a breach of the NRL Code of Conduct following an NRL Integrity Unit investigation,’’ an NRL statement said on Thursday.
“The particulars of the breach notice are that Mitchell featured in imagery, which emerged publicly on 12 August 2024, which depicted him acting in a manner which has brought the game into disrepute.”
Mitchell has five business days to respond to the breach notice.
One of element included in the NRL investigation is understood to be a social media feud that has involved several of the Dubbo locals who were with Mitchell in the motel room.
Amy Brown was the blonde woman who could be seen standing near Mitchell in the picture and addressed the issue on her public Facebook page, denying that she was responsible for leaking the image.
However Ms Brown took aim at another woman who she accused of taking the photo, saying she would “f..king drop her” if she bumped into her down the street of the country town.
That statement led to a war of words involving dozens of other locals, including relatives of the other woman.
Ms Brown has been steadfast in denying she was to blame for leaking the photo, saying in a fresh post on Thursday she was simply “unlucky enough to be in it”.
“All I did was go to a motel where my friend was because she called me up after a night out,” she said.
“I went there for no longer than an hour and left. Your (sic) all blaming the wrong person here.”
Do you know more? Message 0481 056 618 or email tips@dailytelegraph.com.au
Woman found dead in hotel room, man taken to hospital
A crime scene has been established at the hotel in Penrith after a woman was found dead and a man was taken to hospital.
Read more
Beers, bread rolls and KFC: Campsite’s remnants of teen festivities marred by death
The campsite where a 15-year-old from Picton spent his final hours before being allegedly killed by a 32-year-old Narellan man, still has remnants of teenage festivities.
Read more