Sydney underworld figure admits role in overdose death of Rebels bikie Ricky Ciano

John Jamie Tozer was one of Rebels bikie gang member Ricky Ciano’s closest mates. Now he’s admitted to manslaughter for sourcing the drugs for the hotshot that killed him.

Ricky Ciano, left, died in February 2017 after he was shot up with a lethal cocktail of illicit drugs at a remote western NSW property. Pictures: Supplied

A Sydney underworld figure has confessed to the manslaughter of Rebels bikie gang member Ricky Ciano, who died in February 2017 after he was shot up with a lethal cocktail of illicit drugs at a remote western NSW property.

John Jamie Tozer, one of Mr Ciano’s closest friends before his death, admitted to sourcing cocaine and heroin that his half-brother, Daniel Bushell, later injected into Mr Ciano’s left elbow.

The combination of drugs, administered intravenously, is colloquially known as a “speedball” or a “hot-shot”.

According to an agreed set of facts tendered to the NSW Supreme Court, Mr Ciano, a known abuser of prescription opioid drugs, was dead within 30 minutes of receiving the injection.

His body was then bundled into his BMW and the car dumped on the side of Duckmaloi Road, a main thoroughfare out of Oberon, where it was later discovered by police.

Daniel Bushell was sentenced to 12 years jail for the manslaughter of ex bikie Ricky Ciano

Tozer and Bushell were both initially charged with murder and pleaded not guilty.

Bushell was found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter following a trial in September 2023.

He was sentenced to 18 years behind bars, with a non-parole period of 12 years, but has since lodged an appeal against his sentence, which is due for hearing in the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal later this month.

Meanwhile, Tozer was due to stand trial this week on the murder charge, but reached an 11th hour plea deal with prosecutors in which he pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter.

The murder charge was subsequently withdrawn.

In accepting the plea, the Crown conceded that it could not prove beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Ciano did not consent to being ejected with the lethal cocktail of drugs before his death.

Ricky Ciano.

According to the agreed facts, Mr Ciano joined the Rebels in 2001 at the age of 20 and became the president of the Liverpool chapter of the gang in 2008.

However, the court heard he left the club in 2015 and a number of close friends followed him, including Tozer.

By 2017, the pair had gone into business together, with plans to set up a drug lab at an address in Oberon.

Mr Ciano, Tozer, Bushell and another man arrived at the property on February 11, 2017, intending to spend the weekend cooking drugs.

The court heard Bushell gave Mr Ciano the fatal injection sometime that evening or in the early hours of February 12.

No further details surrounding the circumstances of the overdose were given in the court documents, nor was there any alleged motive or explanation about Bushell and Tozer’s involvement.

‘KNOWN ABUSER’

In conceding they couldn’t prove Mr Ciano had not consented to the injection, the Crown acknowledged that Mr Ciano was a known abuser of painkiller medication, with evidence showing he illegally obtained highly addictive opioids including OxyContin and Targin on a weekly basis, sometimes up to 100 tablets at a time.

One witness told police Mr Ciano ate OxyContin tablets “like they were Smarties”.

Meanwhile, Mr Ciano’s wife, who was living on the Gold Coast at the time, reported him missing when he failed to return home after the weekend.

The court heard she contacted Tozer inquiring after her husband’s whereabouts.

He responded by telling her “I’m worried as well. I’m running around trying to see a couple of people. I’m shore (sic) he’s fine.”

Mr Ciano’s body was found the following day.

When questioned, Tozer told police he hadn’t seen or heard from Mr Ciano in four days and was concerned about his friend’s disappearance.

He also claimed Mr Ciano had begun using heroin in recent months because of his back injury, however the truth of that claim could not be established by police.

Tozer, who remains behind bars on remand, will face a sentencing hearing on April 4.