Red Cliffs footy player Marcus Hole allegedly caught in hire car with $120k cocaine haul
A high flying Red Cliffs footballer who enjoys taking gym selfies was allegedly found in a car with more than 300 grams of cocaine and a search of his house later allegedly uncovered steroids
A Red Cliffs footballer has his contract torn up after he was allegedly busted in a rental car with a parcel containing 336 grams of cocaine on the back seat, a court has heard.
Marcus Hole, 27, faced Mildura Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday seeking bail on charges including trafficking a commercial amount of cocaine and possession of methamphetamine and anabolic steroids.
In a statement released on social media, Red Cliffs Football Netball Club said it condemned Mr Hole’s alleged actions and had terminated his contract.
“Following careful consideration, the club has made the decision to terminate the player’s contract, effective immediately, due to a breach of club expectations and values,” the statement reads
The court heard that on the evening of December 1, police pulled over a Nissan X-Trail hire car on the Calder Highway heading towards Red Cliffs after a Crime Stoppers tip-off.
A search of the vehicle allegedly uncovered an Australia Post parcel on the back seat that appeared to contain a large amount of a white powdery substance.
Mr Hole and his co-accused were arrested and a search of Mr Hole’s home allegedly uncovered two vials, one containing anabolic steroids.
The court heard forensic analysis of the parcel allegedly found 11 separately wrapped packages containing 336 grams of cocaine, two packages of MDMA containing 56 grams and another unknown substance weighing 28 grams.
Police claimed the street value of the cocaine was in excess of $100,000.
Mr Hole, who had previously been on parole for other alleged offending, was also facing a charge of tampering with an electronic monitoring device.
In the wake of the charges, Red Cliffs Football Netball Club confirmed it had cut ties with him over the allegations.
The court was told police had obtained CCTV footage that allegedly showed Mr Hole walking up to a car at a Sea Lake service station and receiving a parcel similar to the one officers later found in the back seat of the hire car on December 1.
Mr Hole’s lawyer Phillip Bloemen submitted the delay his client faced, likely to be elongated as testing was done on the drugs found, was a large factor in why he should receive bail.
“Delay from case to trial will be a number of years, and it should be taken into account,” Mr Bloemen said.
He also highlighted Mr Hole’s stable work history, stable accommodation and good family support as factors in his client’s favour when it came to bail.
Magistrate Patrick Southey ultimately rejected his bid for bail, citing his criminal history as a major factor.
“I am very worried about his previous convictions… his criminal history is lengthy and violent… (he is an) unacceptable risk to the community,” Mr Southey said.
Mr Hole was remanded in custody and was next scheduled to appear before the court on February 25.
