Ace Michael Logan Russell: Highland Park dad jailed for drug trafficking, possession

A Highland Park dad aged in his thirties will potentially not see freedom again until the 2030s after he was found to be behind a drug trafficking operation, a court has heard.

Highland Park drug trafficker Ace Michael Logan Russell, 32. Picture: Facebook

A Gold Coast dad aged in his thirties will potentially not see freedom again until the 2030s after he was found to be behind a drug trafficking operation, a court has heard.

Highland Park man Ace Michael Logan Russell, 32, appeared via videolink in Southport Magistrates Court on Tuesday, July 29, to finalise the last outstanding charge related to the a December 19, 2023 raid.

On May 22 in the Brisbane Supreme Court, Russell was sentenced to seven years nine months’ imprisonment, to serve a minimum of three years six months, after pleading guilty to a dozen serious drug charges.

They included producing dangerous drugs in December 2023; trafficking in dangerous drugs between October–December 2023; importing and exporting marketable quantities of border controlled drugs or border controlled plants; supplying a schedule 2 drug on four occasions; and possessing a schedule 1 drug in excess of 2g.

Russell appeared in the Brisbane Supreme Court on May 22 this year, where he was ordered to serve a minimum of three years and six months. Picture: David Clark

He was ordered to commence serving his term of imprisonment as at the sentence date.

In the magistrates court on Tuesday July 29 he pleaded guilty to his final charge, possessing cash obtained from trafficking or supplying drugs.

Police prosecutor Erin Garland told the court police executed a search warrant at Russell’s address on December 19, 2023, during which they found $1384.90 in a safe.

She said that due to the quantity of drugs found at Russell’s property, and his admissions regarding his cannabis operation, detectives formed a suspicion the cash was ill-begotten proceeds from his trafficking in cannabis and other drugs.

The court heard Russell, a married father with young children, had already served 68 days of pre-sentence custody and the prosecution was not seeking any additional punishment for possessing the dirty cash as to do so would be crushing.

Unless Russell can convince the Parole Board Queensland he is reformed after serving out his minimum term, he might be incarcerated until February 2032, the court heard.

Defence lawyer Danielle Egan told the court the reason the charge had to go back to the magistrates court, rather than being dealt with alongside the substantive trafficking matters, was because there was a factual dispute about how much of the cash found on Russell’s premises was in fact the proceeds of drug offending.

Magistrates Deborah Mitchell convicted Russell but imposed no further punishment.