More arrests in Stuart MacGill ‘kidnapping’ case

Two more men have been charged over the alleged abduction of cricket great Stuart MacGill after police raids in Sydney.

Police have released CCTV of two man wanted for questioning over the kidnapping of former Test spin great Stuart MacGill. Picture: NSW Police

Another two men have been charged over the alleged abduction of Australian cricket great Stuart MacGill, after police raids in Blacktown and Rose Hill in Sydney uncovered several items believed to be involved in the botched drug deal that led to Mr MacGill’s alleged kidnapping in April.

 CCTV footage of Rouse Hill man Elijah Schaaf and Blacktown resident Vaeluagaomatagy Feilo was released to the public last week, with police urging anyone in the public who recognised the men to come forward.

It’s understood the pair were “directly involved” in the alleged abduction, in which the former Test cricketer was allegedly dragged into a van on Sydney’s lower north shore and driven to an isolated farmhouse, where he was subsequently stripped naked, assaulted and held at gunpoint.

Mr Schaaf, 22, and Mr Felio, 19, who were already being held on remand behind bars at Silver­water Correctional Centre for an unrelated matter, were arrested at Parramatta Police Station.

Both were charged with “intent to get advantage, occasion actual bodily harm and participate in a criminal group”.

On Tuesday, Detective Superintendent Andrew Koutsoufis told reporters the NSW Serious Crimes Squad “were able to seize a number of important items from the raids, including clothing and a mobile phone, which will assist us in being able to get more information” related to the alleged abduction. But the search for a third man, known as “Sonny”, continues after police also arrested four men back in May, including the brother of Mr MacGill’s partner, Marino Sotiropoulos, as well as Mr Schaaf’s cousins, Frederick and Richard Schaaf.

It is alleged Mr MacGill, 50, introduced Mr Sotiropoulos to Sonny, who police call a “street-level drug dealer”, at his restaurant Aristotle’s in Neutral Bay.

Following a dispute over a $660,000 cocaine deal that “fell through”, police say Sonny went missing and Mr Sotiropoulos tried to extract money from Mr MacGill because he had introduced the pair. But Detective Superintendent Koutsoufis continues to dispel any reports of a close relationship between Mr MacGill and Sonny, describing them last week as “very distant associates”.

A computer-generated image of Sonny has been described by police as “a Middle Eastern male, mid-30s, chubby appearance, full-face beard and brown eyes”.

A computer-generated image of the elusive ‘Sonny’ who has been described by police as a ‘Middle Eastern male’. Picture: NSW Police

In his first public appearance since the incident, Mr MacGill continued to deny any knowledge of the drug deal between Mr Sotiropoulos and Sonny.

“I know I have done nothing wrong,” Mr MacGill told Nine’s A Current Affair more than a week ago. “If people choose to think something contrary to what’s been presented by both myself and the police, that’s up to them.

“I couldn’t have done anything different … we consider ourselves to be the innocent parties.”