David Costa fronts court after ordering party drugs online

We’ve heard of the booming Melbourne property market increasing the load on roads and schools, but now a former Werribee real estate director has blamed it for his spiral into drugs.

A former Werribee real estate director has fronted court after he ordered drugs online.

A former Werribee real estate director has blamed the west’s booming property market for his escalating drug habit.

David Costa, who ran Elders Real Estate in Werribee and Tarneit for 15 years, fronted court last month after he was sprung buying Gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) online.

The potent drug, nicknamed “coma in a bottle”, is a solvent found in paint strippers, nail polish remover and stain removers.

The County Court heard Costa, 36, ordered almost a litre of the low-cost drug from China to his home in Altona last July.

Acting on information from Australian Border Force officers, a member of the Australian Federal Police posed as a courier and delivered the goods, arresting Costa a short time later.

A number of zip lock bags containing 2.7g of methylamphetamine were found during a search of the home.

David Costa fronted court after he was caught importing a party drug nicknamed “coma in a bottle”. Picture: Facebook

Costa admitted he had a drug problem and had bought the illicit substances for personal use.

The court heard the father of two turned to drugs to combat “burnout” after he was forced to work long hours “under very high pressure” as real estate demand in the west boomed.

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Costa — who now runs a carwash in Truganina — regularly used GBL, cocaine and amphetamines but since being charged he had “taken significant steps” towards rehabilitation, the court was told.

Counsellor Warren Scott Holland told the court Costa had been “in effect self-medicating for anxiety and depression arising from the demands of (his) work”.

Judge Wendy Wilmoth praised Costa’s lack of criminal history and willingness to seek help for his addiction.

“There was no commercial element to (buying the drugs and) it was not a sophisticated transaction. It was easily detected through the use of your own address and your own mobile phone number,” she said.

“Your genuine commitment to your recovery over many months and the improvement from your initially precarious state of mental health is a positive indication of reasonable prospects for rehabilitation from offending.

“It seems … you are not blind to the likelihood that considerable work still needs to be done.”

Judge Wilmoth convicted Costa and sentenced him to a two-year community corrections order.

He must complete 70 hours of unpaid work and attend drug abuse and mental health treatment.