Faces of NSW’s meth scourge: 30 dealers who faced court for supplying ice
NSW ranks among the highest in the country for meth abuse, with thousands of amphetamine-related offences recorded in just one year. Here are 30 faces behind the state’s meth mania.
NSW
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One of the state’s top cops has issued a stern warning to drug dealers profiting off the devastating ice addictions destroying lives across NSW, as data reveals the hotspots for dealing.
Numbers from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research show there were more than 8000 amphetamine-related offences from October 2021 to September 2022.
Regional areas such as Lake Macquarie, Albury, Hilltops and Griffith all ranked in the top 20 worst areas for trafficking and dealing amphetamines.
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Meanwhile, the latest data from the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission showed methamphetamine consumption increased in capital cities and regional sites with regional NSW ranked second nationally for use.
Commander of the Riverina Police District Andrew Spliet says the impacts of meth use in the community are far-reaching.
“It’s a drug that reaches all corners of communities and across all socio-economic groups,” he said.
“Of particular concern is young people who start to use amphetamines because their outlook on life becomes about when they can next get their hit of drugs.
“It’s not just a police issue, we all have a part to play in supporting people who are addicted.”
Superintendent Spliet said the focus of law enforcement is those who supply drugs, not just ice, throughout the region and profit off the illegal trade.
“We run covert and overt operations. Recently we had the drug dog down to go through our licensed premises in Wagga and out through to Cootamundra, and there was a variety of different drugs located,” he said.
“Our covert ops target a generalised area, we did that last year and were able to target people supplying drugs through licensed premises.
“Then when we get specific tips we will conduct a search warrant at properties and arrest those involved.”
Another often unseen impact of the ice scourge in regional areas is the danger it poses to the police who walk the beat.
A house call to a domestic dispute or an argument on the street can quickly become a dangerous situation if a person’s ability to think rationally is impeded by ice.
“Depending on how under the influence they are, they can be irrational which leads to violence so local police have to engage physically when they would rather just communicate,” Superintendent Spliet said.
“At times we have to go hands on with people which can lead to injuries for officers and other parties so there is an added layer to the issue of drugs in the community.
“However our officers in the Riverina work hard to de-escalate situations to avoid violence.”
Superintendent Spliet had just one message to those who continue to profit off the heartbreaking addiction of vulnerable members of the community: police are hunting you down.
“Eventually you will come under the spotlight of police and we will target you and put you before the courts,” he said.
“We will end up knocking on your door.
“To those in the community who notice anything unusual or are concerned should reach out to police because that can be the piece of the puzzle to find that drug network.”
Here are 30 offenders sentenced in NSW courts for supplying meth in our communities:
KYLE ANTHONY THOMPSON: DUBBO
A Wellington man was caught with more than 7kg of ice and almost 1kg of heroin.
Kyle Anthony Thompson was jailed after a court heard he was the principal target of Strike Force Pinnacle, which was established to investigate prohibited drug supply in the Wellington area, and was monitored from June 2019 to May 2020.
Investigators found Thompson was the head of a Wellington-based syndicate involved in the supply of prohibited drugs from an up-line supplier in Sydney.
Thompson received for the purpose of supply – 7.08kg of methylamphetamine, 267.66g of cocaine, 903.2g of heroin – and knowingly took part in the supply of 73.7g MDMA.
Judge Craig Smith sentenced Thompson to 14 years and three months in jail, with a non-parole period of 10 years.
BUTCH TYE: GOSFORD
A former defence force member was “calling out for some acceptance” when he dropped out of the navy and turned to an outlaw motorcycle gang that “embraced him with open arms”.
Butch Junior Tye pleaded guilty in Gosford District Court in November to deemed supply of methylamphetamine and two related charges of possessing steroids.
The court heard the 33-year-old joined the navy after leaving school but became “disillusioned” when it would not accept his applications to join a special forces unit.
After police executed a firearm prohibition order against Tye in November 2021, they found a clear resealable plastic bag containing 64.05g of methylamphetamine with a purity of 74.5 per cent.
Tye was convicted and sentenced to two years jail with a non-parole period of one year and three months. He was also put on a community corrections order for 12 months.
MATTHEW JAMES LINCOLN: ILLAWARRA
A Balgownie drug dealer was admonished by a magistrate for “making money off other people’s misery”, as he was sentenced to two-years jail with a non-parole period of 18 months.
Matthew James Lincoln pleaded guilty to supplying an indictable quantity of a prohibited drug – namely methylamphetamine – and dealing the proceeds of crime.
Lincoln defied Covid-19 lockdown restrictions to sell drugs in Appin, the Illawarra and as far south as Nowra and made 59 separate meth deals, selling 67.9g of the “absolutely appalling drug” with a street value in excess of $20,000.
SCOTT ANDREW MILLER: SYDNEY
An Olympic medallist was jailed for having a “central role” in supplying commercial quantities of ice and heroin following a “public comedown” from his elite swimming career.
Scott Andrew Miller pleaded guilty to two counts of supplying a prohibited drug, dealing with property proceeds of crime and participating in a criminal group contributing to criminal activity.
He was sentenced to five years and six months in jail for supplying heroin and ice in commercial quantities.
CAMERON KELLY AND DWAYNE DIAZ: BERKELEY
Two drug dealing dads learned their fates after being arrested for drug dealings worth more than $200,000, dating back to 2020.
Cameron Jade Kelly and Dwayne Evan Diaz, both from Berkeley, were arrested in March 2021 after a major drug sting operation instigated by Strike Force Cohen, including the phone tapping of the two men’s phones.
In July 2020, the pair divvied up almost 350kg of an illegal stimulant into 21 different deals, before a phone tap later caught Kelly organising the sale of 280g of meth with Diaz.
Both pleaded guilty to two charges each of supplying a commercial quantity of a prohibited drug.
Diaz, 37, was sentenced to three years and six months in prison, while Kelly, 40, was sentenced to three years and eight months. Both men are eligible for parole in mid-2023.
DANICA WIGMORE-SVIDRON AND IBRAHIM KAYA: WYONG
Danica Wigmore-Svidron and Ibrahim Kaya used mobile phone apps such as Snapchat to sell methylamphetamine to fund their lifestyle.
The pair faced Wyong Local Court, both pleading guilty to two counts of supplying prohibited drugs and one count of dealing with the proceeds of crime.
An investigation by Tuggerah Lakes Police in September 2021 revealed the pair were identified through a series of phone taps.
The pair were picked up in lawfully recorded telephone conversations selling 14g of methylamphetamine for $3650 on separate occasions on October 12 and 28 and again on November 12 last year.
They were convicted and sentenced to an intensive corrections order for 22 months with 200 hours of community service.
CHAD MUSGRAVE: NEWCASTLE
Chad Joseph Musgrave, 36, was caught dealing meth across the Newcastle region.
It was revealed in court he was supplying drugs at Hamilton on Boxing Day last year on two occasions, totalling almost 800g. He was also caught dealing at Belmont last December.
He pleaded guilty in October to drug supply and ongoing drug supply and in Newcastle District Court in November he was sentenced to two years and six months jail with a non-parole period of 12 months.
SUZANNA RISTEVSKA: BERKELEY
A drug-dependent hairdresser was sentenced to nearly two years in jail after being found at the heart of a major Sydney drug operation.
Suzanna Ristevska was busted running a drug house from her Berkeley home by undercover police part of Strike Force More in July 2021.
Court documents revealed phone taps led to investigators pinning Ristevska for sourcing and supplying 41.76 grams of heroin and 496.44 grams of meth during mid-2021.
She will be eligible for parole in May 2023.
AMIT KUMAR: MIRANDA
An IT businessman narrowly avoided being sent to jail in May after about $30,000 worth of ice was found inside his Miranda home.
The stash of drugs was only found after Amit Kumar’s study caught alight when a small wick near his ice pipe ignited in November 2020.
The heat from the room caused windows to explode and glass was propelled about 15 metres into adjoining residences.
Kumar pleaded guilty to supplying between an indictable to commercial quantity of prohibited drugs, was convicted and sentenced to an intensive correction order for 15 months.
PETER MOGYOROSI: SUTHERLAND
An elderly former taxi driver avoided jail in October after he “helped a mate” by picking up and dropping off a package of meth using his car.
Agreed facts tendered to court said police established Strike Force Nanangroe to investigate the supply of methylamphetamine in the St George area in February 2020 and intercepted calls between Peter Mogyorosi and a supplier.
Mogyorosi pleaded guilty to taking part in the supply of an indictable to commercial quantity of a prohibited drug and was sentenced to a nine-month intensive corrections order and fined $3000.
SHANNON DEAN: CAMDEN
Shannon Dean, 35, told his mates he could get drugs for a bucks party, but police pulled him over after number plate checks revealed his licence had been suspended.
In his shorts officers found a freezer-style plastic bag containing meth. Dean told the officers there were two eight balls – a street term for 3.5 grams – and it was for a bucks weekend.
When officers weighed the meth, it came to 10.9 grams.
Dean was convicted after he pleaded guilty to supplying a prohibited drug, placed on a 12-month community correction order, and disqualified him from driving for three months.
TIANA KALEEL: BRIGHTON-LE-SANDS
A Brighton-Le-Sands childcare worker busted with a reusable shopping bag full of ice told a court she was talked into it by an abusive partner.
Police found Tiana Kaleel with 490g of ice in a Woolies bag on her passenger seat – just 10g less than the large commercial amount – when they pulled her over in Burwood Heights for failing to indicate through a roundabout on June 16, 2021.
Judge Mark Williams spared Kaleel – who had spent several days behind bars on remand between her arrest and her release on bail – any further jail time.
She was instead convicted of commercial drug supply and sentenced to a 17-month intensive corrections order and 200 hours’ community service after the court heard she had no prior criminal record.
DEAN MILLER: CENTRAL COAST
After a lifetime of addiction that began with smoking cannabis at age 11, taking speed at 13 and heroin by 16, Dean Russell Miller wanted to be off drugs when he turned 50.
But when he found himself released from jail in November 2019, with nowhere to live and no car to drive himself to the methadone clinic, he relapsed just a month later.
Dean Russell Miller, 51, supplied large amounts of MDMA across the Central Coast region and he was sentenced in Gosford District Court in July 2022
Over a four-month period in 2020 Miller supplied 691.75g of methylamphetamine.
He pleaded guilty in October, 2021 to two counts of supplying commercial quantities of drugs along with five further charges, including dealing with proceeds of crime and supplying drugs, taken into account on sentence.
He was subsequently sentenced to four years and nine months in jail, with a non-parole period of two years and four months.
Judge Tanya Bright said the offences reflected “serious criminality”.
MICHAEL LOWE: SYDNEY
A highly-educated pharmacist, trusted to responsibly dispense medication while secretly hiding illegal drugs and bundles of cash, was jailed for a large-scale meth supply operation driven by heartbreak.
Michael Lowe bowed his head as he was sentenced at Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court to three years and nine months behind bars after pleading guilty to commercial drug supply and dealing with more than $100,000 worth of crime proceeds.
Judge Jon Williams said he accepted Lowe was remorseful.
Had it not been for Lowe’s guilty plea, he would have been sentenced to five years’ jail. He will be eligible for parole on June 9, 2024.
Lowe has since lodged a notice of intention to appeal his sentence.
VANESSA LENARD: PICTON
A hairdresser and mother-of-two was busted dealing meth out of the garage of her home in Grasmere by police phone taps.
Vanessa Lenard pleaded guilty to two counts of supplying methamphetamine on an ongoing basis and possessing two types of illegal drugs, with police facts showing she supplied 19.53 grams of meth in 29 separate transactions over two months.
She was convicted and sentenced to a two year intensive corrections order and ordered her to focus on rehabilitation, abstain from drugs, and submit to random drug testing when directed.
SIMON SULESKI AND SALIM NEHME: ILLAWARRA
Two Illawarra drug dealers working for the “Godfather”, have been jailed until the end of 2026 for their role in the ”7-Eleven of the drug trade”.
Simon Dimitrija Suleski and Salim Sam Nehme were arrested in an Unanderra street in December 2020, following a major undercover operation which connected them to the sale, and pending sale of $1.5 million of illicit drugs.
The duo were involved in selling 1.2kg of cocaine, 846g of meth, and 1110g of MDMA, with the transactions occurring between September 2020 and the date of their arrests.
They both pleaded guilty to three counts of supplying a large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug and were sentenced to five years and six months in jail.
CHRISTOPHER IAN WALSH AND BETTINA HOENSELAARS: COFFS HARBOUR
A pair of newlyweds got in over their heads when they wound up supplying cocaine and meth to support their drug habits.
The couple married and moved to Grafton to start a new life together and “both resolved their issue with drugs and are not partaking at all”.
Coffs Harbour Local Court heard Ian Walsh did not “go out onto the streets” to sell drugs but that he was “servicing his own drug habit”.
Walsh pleaded guilty to three counts of indictable prohibited drug supply and three counts of small prohibited drug supply.
Bettina Hoenselaars pleaded guilty to one count of participating in indictable prohibited drug supply.
Walsh was convicted and ordered to serve an 11-month intensive corrections order, and an 18-month community corrections order.
Hoenselaars was convicted and sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order.
MELANIE COX: COFFS HARBOUR
Officers uncovered a stash of drugs including 245g of ice, 30g of cocaine and $4180 in cash when they pulled over a woman on a major highway.
Melanie Cox was driving on the Pacific Hwy at North Boambee Valley on December 16 last year when she was stopped by police as part of a wider operation investigating the supply of prohibited drugs between Sydney and Tweed Heads.
The drugs were found hidden through the car, including behind a panel in the driver side footwell and in the steering column, according to police documents.
Cox pleaded guilty to two counts of supply a prohibited drug, and one count of recklessly deal with the proceeds of crime. She was convicted and jailed for 15 months, served by way of intensive correction in the community.
AARON LUONG: CABRAMATTA
A young man was nabbed driving down the Pacific Highway with an estimated $2 million worth of marijuana, heroin and meth stashed in a rental truck.
Aaron Luong had 183kg of cannabis inside removalist boxes, 816g of heroin between two mattresses and 2.5kg of meth in a Woolworths bag when he was pulled over north of Byron Bay on July 6, 2021.
At the time of the offence, Sydney residents were not allowed to leave home without reasonable excuse due to Covid-19 lockdowns.
Luong pleaded guilty in Lismore District Court to one count each of supplying commercial quantities of prohibited drugs, dealing with the proceeds of a crime and leaving home without reasonable excuse during the Covid-19 lockdown.
He was sentenced to six years and six months in jail and was eligible to apply for parole on January 5, 2025.
TYLER WILLIAM SINCLAIR HULL: COFFS HARBOUR
A young meth courier caught with almost 1kg of meth hidden throughout a car during a drug run risked life in jail for just $1500.
Tyler William Sinclair Hull borrowed a car from another man involved in “the network” and drove it to Sydney to collect methamphetamine but was stopped by police, who found 992g of the drug stashed in various hidden compartments.
He was convicted of supplying prohibited drugs on an ongoing basis and supplying prohibited drugs (greater than a large commercial quantity), and was jailed for four years and eight months.
BEAU MARSHALL: CENTRAL COAST
Beau Dennis Marshall was the ringleader of a Central Coast to Tamworth drug ring, supplying ice between the two regions.
He was sentenced in Downing Centre District Court in November along with Joseph Charles Neale, Darren John Scott, Glenn Mervyn Hanrahan, Dennis Cummins after each man pleaded guilty to a variety of offences including the ongoing supply of prohibited drugs.
The drug syndicate was discovered when Tuggerah Lakes Police established Strike Force Harle in March 2020 to investigate the supply of methylamphetamine on the Central Coast.
Meanwhile in October, officers from Oxley Police District established Strike Force Kunderbung to investigate the supply of ice in the Tamworth area.
Officers from both strike forces obtained warrants to intercept Marshall and several other men’s phones and through recorded calls and physical surveillance, found Marshall conducted no less than 103 drug transactions with a total amount of 1.4652kg of methylamphetamine between September 24 and December 2 in 2020.
Marshall pleaded guilty to supplying a large commercial quantity of drugs, knowingly deal with the proceeds of crime and possessing a prohibited drug and sentenced to 12 years jail and will be eligible for parole on April 3, 2029.
Hanrahan, of Tamworth, pleaded guilty to supplying a large commercial quantity of drugs, supplying a prohibited drug and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime and was sentenced to nine years jail with six years non-parole.
Cummings, 53, of Watanobbi, pleaded guilty to two counts of dealing with the proceeds of crime, three counts of possessing a prohibited weapon, supplying a prohibited drug, possessing a prohibited drug and three counts of possessing a prohibited firearm.
He was sentenced to six years and four months in jail with a non-parole period of three years and 11 months.
Scott, 55, of Killarney Vale, and Neale, 48 of Barraba, both pleaded guilty to one count each of supplying a commercial quantity of drugs.
Scott was sentenced to five years and three months with a non-parole period of three years and three months while Neale received a minimum of two years and four months jail.
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