NSW jeweller pleads guilty to major trafficking of ice, cocaine and heroin into Tasmania

More than a year after his extradition, a New South Wales jeweller has made a plea in his major drug trafficking case in Tasmania. Latest from court.

A 37-year-old NSW man has been arrested and extradited to Tasmania charged with trafficking. Four luxury vehicles and a motorcycle valued over $2m have been seized by police. Picture: Tasmania and NSW Police.

A New South Wales jeweller has pleaded guilty in a major drug trafficking case, having brought ice, cocaine and heroin into Tasmania over a period of two years.

Jean Michele Christophe Wimmer, 39, previously pleaded not guilty to a singular charge of trafficking in a controlled substance between May 2019 and May 2021.

But on Monday, he changed his plea to guilty in the Supreme Court of Tasmania before Justice Helen Wood.

However, Wimmer has contested the particulars of the case, with the court to hold a disputed facts hearing next year.

Jean Wimmer has pleaded guilty to a major drug trafficking case, having brought ice, cocaine and heroin into Tasmania.

Wimmer, who is currently in custody after being extradited from NSW in April 2022 following his arrest at Paramatta, appeared in the docks on Monday and entered the plea.

Justice Wood heard the case was a “large trafficking matter”.

The case had been expected to go to trial until the court heard in September it was likely to resolve, with no need for a trial, following a proposal put by the state.

At the time of his arrest, NSW Police claimed Wimmer had been running a drug trafficking syndicate – worth nearly $5 million – from his western Sydney home.

As part of a seven-month investigation, police said they seized three Ferraris, a Lamborghini, a gold-plated Harley-Davidson, and cash.

The investigation was led by Tasmania Police’s Crime and Intelligence Command and supported by the Australian Federal Police National Anti-Gangs Squad and the NSW Police Force’s Criminal Groups Squad – involving more than 25 investigators across the two states.

Wimmer will return to court on January 29.

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