Home And Away star Orpheus Pledger completes court diversion over drug charges

Home and Away hunk Orpheus Pledger has made the first step towards a better life after being caught with drugs at a popular Melbourne nightclub.

Aussie soap star Orpheus Pledger has successfully completed a court ordered diversion after being caught with drugs at a popular Melbourne nightspot in February last year.

Pledger, who starred in Home And Away and House Husbands, was spared a conviction in November last year after admitting to possessing half a gram of ice and 30 Valium tablets on Chapel St, Prahran months earlier.

In return, Pledger, 28, was given six months to partake in a drug awareness course, pen a letter of “gratitude” to the police informant in the matter and donate $150 to the court fund.

On Monday, the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court confirmed the TV hunk had complied with all requirements and his matters were formally dismissed.

Pledger has recently culled his online presence, deleting hundreds of photos from social media.

During his six month deadline, Pledger appeared in the popular reality TV show, SAS, but his stint was short lived after he quit the military training show after refusing to help out around camp and copping backlash from fellow recruits.

In promo ads for the popular show, Pledger said it would be “a great accomplishment for me to complete something” and referenced his “very tough” past year.

Pledger, who boasts more than 130k followers on Instagram, has in recent weeks curiously deleted all but three photos from his platform.


The actor’s successful diversion course was signed off by a magistrate behind closed doors, without Pledger or any legal parties present.
Diversions are usually granted to first-time offenders with no conviction or finding of guilt recorded against them.

Magistrate Tim Bourke revealed during the November 2021 hearing Pledger had already been granted a diversion in 2015 over an incident in which he was ordered to undergo an anger management course and write a letter of apology to his victim.

Mr Bourke said the earlier incident may ordinarily disqualify him from receiving another diversion, but ultimately granted the soap star a second-chance.

Diversions must be agreed to be police and require offenders to comply with certain conditions imposed by the court.

The actor was given six months to take a drug awareness court and pay $150 to court fund. Picture: David Swift.

The soap star was nabbed by police after members of the public observed him acting suspiciously in his car parked on Chapel St about 5.15pm on February 19.

When answering the officer’s questions, the actor had noticeably “slowed speech”, delayed reaction and a “general inability to communicate effectively” with police, a court summary states.

Officers – one of whom had dealt with Pledger on a previous occasion – quickly formed the opinion the TV star was drug-affected and began searching his grey BMW where they found the illicit drugs.

Pledger landed the role of Mason Morgan on the long running TV series Home And Away in 2016 before quitting three years later to pursue a career in music.