John Nikolic gets sentenced to 23 years in jail, with non-parole period of 18 years in a Fiji court

Convicted Australian drug smuggler and disgraced horse trainer John Nikolic has copped a heavy jail sentence after it was revealed he is at risk of developing a devastating degenerative disease.

Australian drug smuggler John Nikolic will spend at least the next 18 years behind bars in Fiji, where there is a possibility he will become physically and mentally disabled through the devastating, degenerative Huntington’s disease which plagues his family.

Suva High Court judge Daniel Goundar sentenced the former Melbourne horse trainer to 23 years in prison, with a non-parole period of 18 years, for drug importation and weapons offences.

Nikolic did not flinch when the sentence was handed down and showed no sign of emotion afterwards.

It is understood his legal team expected a sentence of less than 14 years.

Nikolic has been on remand in Lautoka and Suva prisons since his yacht Shenanigans was raided by Fiji Customs at Denarau Marina on June 22 last year.

Cocaine and methamphetamine — both of which Nikolic smuggled into Fiji — were dangerous, illicit drugs which caused great harm to the community, something which drug dealers making money from their lucrative trade didn’t appear to care about Justice Goundar said in handing down his sentence.

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John Nikolic at the High court in Suva, for his sentencing hearing. He was found guilty of importing drugs including cocaine and possessing a weapon in Fiji. His wife Yvette was found not guilty and is now back in Australia. Picture Gary Ramage

Nikolic was “in the business” of illicit drug dealing and had made no attempt to explain his conduct or show remorse, he said.

It is understood Nikolic is now 46 or 47 years old and has two teenage children.

His wife, Yvette, who also made the yacht journey from Florida to Colombia, through Panama and across the Pacific in the first half of last year, was found not guilty of all charges and walked free from court on February 19.

The court yesterday heard Nikolic had tested positive for the gene which leads to Huntington’s disease and two of his uncles had suicided after developing symptoms.

His mother Karen — who attended court for the first time yesterday — had also recently developed the disease, it was told.

Nikolic’s lawyer Wasu Pillay said his client had been tested for the Huntington’s gene several years’ ago and been found to have it.

It was possible he would develop the disease in future years, Mr Pillay said.

But lead prosecutor Lee Burney said during Nikolic’s sentencing hearing that whether he was at risk of developing a terrible disease was not relevant to sentencing.

John Nikolic in Suva, Fiji. Picture Gary Ramage

Nikolic could not ask the court to “have pity on me because I’ve got this, (because) he knew he had it when he embarked on the journey”, Mr Burney said.

“It’s a contingent illness anyway,” he said. “The medical evidence is he’s only at risk of it.”

Mr Burney said Nikolic had shown “not an ounce” of remorse throughout the trial for his crimes.

“Even today, the offender expresses no remorse, none whatsoever,” he said.

While the defence had argued Nikolic was a devoted Christian and “an honest man”, his criminal actions and complete lack of remorse indicated otherwise, Mr Burney said.

John’s parents Karen and John Nikolic attended the High Court trial in Suva for the first time today, leaving through a side court door and walking quickly through the court carpark following the morning’s sentencing hearing.

They did not return to court in the afternoon to hear Justice Goundar deliver his lengthy sentence.

However, earlier in the day John sat with, and embraced, his mother in the courtroom, rubbing her back and comforting her.

John Nikolic's parents John Snr and Karen at the court today. Picture: News Corp

Cocaine bars worth up to $30 million, methamphetamine and cocaine tablets, two guns and 112 rounds of ammunition — wrapped in towels, duct-taped and hidden inside a wall in the yacht’s saloon area — were found on Shenanigans when it was raided.

Ten bars of cocaine were found by Customs authorities in a blue bag inside Shenanigan’s lazerette locker, under the deck.

Nikolic then told authorities where they would find more bars of cocaine, presumably to gain the trust of Customs officers, so he would be allowed to speak with his wife, Justice Goundar said.

John Nikolic at the High court in Suva, for his sentencing hearing. Picture Gary Ramage

After speaking with Yvette, Nikolic had taken a drug overdose and been rushed to hospital, he said.

The Director of Public Prosecutions has flagged it is considering appealing Yvette Nikolic’s acquittal.

Huntington’s disease is a fatal genetic disorder that causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain. It leads to the loss of body and brain function and is incurable.

The most common symptom is jerky movements of the arms and legs, known as ‘chorea’. A person with Huntington’s disease may also have difficulties with speech, swallowing and concentration. Other symptoms of Huntington’s disease include memory loss, difficulties in concentrating and making plans, depression (which about around one third of people diagnosed experience), behavioural problems, mood swings, apathy and aggression.

A child born to a person who carries the Huntington’s disease gene has a 50 per cent chance of inheriting the gene and developing the disease.