- Former bowler to stand trial for alleged role in deal
- He has been free on bail since his arrest in September 2023.
- The 53-year-old will return to court on April 12.
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Cricket great Stuart MacGill maintains he is “absolutely” the victim of a kidnapping and has suffered greatly as he prepares to stand trial for his alleged role in a large-scale cocaine deal.
MacGill pleaded not guilty in Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court on Thursday and pledged to stand trial for his alleged role in a $330,000 drug deal.
The cult figure remains on bail since his arrest in September last year, when he was charged with knowingly participating in the supply of a large commercial quantity of a banned drug.
According to court documents, MacGill is alleged to have been involved in the supply of one kilogram of cocaine in Neutral Bay, on Sydney’s lower north shore, between April 1 and April 14, 2021.
Police have alleged the 53-year-old was involved in the cocaine deal worth more than $330,000.
MacGill appears outside Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court on Thursday, where he pleaded not guilty.
In court Thursday, MacGill’s lawyer, Thos Hodgson, pleaded not guilty.
MacGill stood as he was committed to stand trial in the District Court, where he will be formally arraigned later this year.
Magistrate Susan Horan agreed to fast-track his arraignment, and the hearing was told the Crown Prosecution Service was asking for the matter to be dealt with as soon as possible given the men charged with his alleged kidnapping were also awaiting trial.
The investigation into MacGill began in 2021 after he was allegedly abducted outside his Cremorne apartment in April 2021.
The former fast bowler (pictured center with cricket star Steve Smith, right, during a 2012 Big Bash League match) is accused of being involved in a large-scale cocaine racket.
They allegedly took him to a property in Bringelly, in Sydney’s southwest, where they assaulted him, threatened him with a gun and demanded money.
Six men have been charged with the alleged kidnapping and have pleaded not guilty and remain before the courts.
“He will defend himself very strongly,” Hodgson said outside court.
‘He certainly does (defends his innocence). He is really the person who has suffered a lot because of this. He suffered a terrible experience.
“Emotionally, it’s taken a huge toll on him.”
The former Test cricket star, 53 (pictured leaving court on Thursday) has “suffered greatly” after being allegedly kidnapped in April 2021, his lawyer told the court.
MacGill has repeatedly stated that he was not involved in any crime.
“I know I haven’t done anything wrong,” he told A Current Affair in 2021.
He added that he was an “innocent” party in the matter.
MacGill took 208 wickets during his 44 Test appearances for Australia during a stellar career largely spent in the shadow of Shane Warne.
MacGill will appear in court on April 12.