Former ABC radio presenter caught in raid with $600,000 worth of drugs

A former high-profile ABC presenter has been arrested for possession of a commercial supply of drugs worth $600,000.

Ashley Hall, 52, who once presented major current affairs programs like AM, PM and The World Today for the public broadcaster, was taken into custody by NSW Police last Wednesday, December 7.


Five hundred tablets of MDMA, 100g of cocaine, 3.2 kilos of GHB, 700g of meth, and over 1 kilo of cannabis were seized in an operation shortly after his arrest spanning two Sydney hotels, along with $70,000 in cash.

NSW Police said all items will undergo forensic examination.

Hall was charged with 23 drug offences, including two counts of supplying illegal drugs in large commercial quantities, supplying prohibited drugs on an ongoing basis, and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime.


318551493_526810036158087_4774898303492516516_n.jpg
Hall faces drug charges anew after his arrest. Image Credit: Facebook/NSW Police Force


He was refused bail and will remain in police custody until February when he makes his next court appearance.

Section 25 of the NSW Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act of 1985 states that knowingly supplying or taking part in the use of ‘not less than a “large commercial quantity”’ of prohibited drugs can carry a penalty of life imprisonment and/or 5000 penalty units.

This isn’t Hall’s first incident involving illegal drugs.


In January 2021, he was sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order after being arrested for selling illegal drugs in Sydney.

He pled guilty to two counts of supplying prohibited drugs and four counts of drug possession.

Cocaine, cannabis, and LSD were among the drugs seized in the hotel room he was staying at.

The arrest is part of a wider crackdown by NSW Police on illegal drugs in Sydney, which has the distinction of being the country’s top consumer of cocaine with 800mg used for every 1000 Sydneysiders daily on average according to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission.


318212553_526809842824773_1541884239146299147_n.jpg
Drugs and cash worth a combined $600,000 was seized in operations related to Hall’s arrest. Image Credit: Facebook/NSW Police Force


The city was also the site of six arrests made in November as part of multinational efforts to stop an organised crime network from dumping illegal drugs on Australian streets.

The arrests yielded $3 million in cash and a whopping 300kg of meth and cocaine.

But Sydney is only a fraction of the nation’s overall drug problem.

A report in February revealed that Australia is a ‘lucrative’ market for illegal drugs and acts as a hub for the trans-Pacific drug trade.

Key Takeaways

  • Former ABC presenter Ashley Hall has been arrested on drug offences after police allegedly found $600,000 worth of drugs in two hotel rooms he was staying in.
  • Hall previously worked on programs such as AM, PM, and The World Today.
  • Hall has been charged with 23 offences, including supplying a prohibited drug greater than or equal to commercial quantity and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime.
  • He will face court in February and has been refused bail.
Estimates place the Australian illegal drug trade industry’s worth at $11.3 billion annually.

Crime groups operating in the country have also been said to expand their operations to nearby Pacific Islander countries like the Cook Islands and Fiji.

Back home, according to the 2019 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, 16.4 per cent (3.4 million) of Aussies reported using drugs the year prior to the poll.


-hbh0-GI_400x400.jpg
Ashley Hall was once a key figure in ABC Radio. Credit: Twitter/@ashthoughts


The COVID pandemic only made things worse, pushing deaths linked to illegal drug use to record highs seen only in the 90s with five Aussies lost daily in 2020.

If you or anyone you know have a problem with using illegal drugs, we highly encourage getting in touch with services like Narcotics Anonymous Australia by phone at 1300 652 820 or 0488 811 247.

What is your reaction to this news? How severe do you think is Australia’s drug problem?

Tell us your thoughts below!


Source: YouTube/7News Australia
 
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A former high-profile ABC presenter has been arrested for possession of a commercial supply of drugs worth $600,000.

Ashley Hall, 52, who once presented major current affairs programs like AM, PM and The World Today for the public broadcaster, was taken into custody by NSW Police last Wednesday, December 7.


Five hundred tablets of MDMA, 100g of cocaine, 3.2 kilos of GHB, 700g of meth, and over 1 kilo of cannabis were seized in an operation shortly after his arrest spanning two Sydney hotels, along with $70,000 in cash.

NSW Police said all items will undergo forensic examination.

Hall was charged with 23 drug offences, including two counts of supplying illegal drugs in large commercial quantities, supplying prohibited drugs on an ongoing basis, and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime.


View attachment 10240
Hall faces drug charges anew after his arrest. Image Credit: Facebook/NSW Police Force


He was refused bail and will remain in police custody until February when he makes his next court appearance.

Section 25 of the NSW Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act of 1985 states that knowingly supplying or taking part in the use of ‘not less than a “large commercial quantity”’ of prohibited drugs can carry a penalty of life imprisonment and/or 5000 penalty units.

This isn’t Hall’s first incident involving illegal drugs.


In January 2021, he was sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order after being arrested for selling illegal drugs in Sydney.

He pled guilty to two counts of supplying prohibited drugs and four counts of drug possession.

Cocaine, cannabis, and LSD were among the drugs seized in the hotel room he was staying at.

The arrest is part of a wider crackdown by NSW Police on illegal drugs in Sydney, which has the distinction of being the country’s top consumer of cocaine with 800mg used for every 1000 Sydneysiders daily on average according to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission.


View attachment 10239
Drugs and cash worth a combined $600,000 was seized in operations related to Hall’s arrest. Image Credit: Facebook/NSW Police Force


The city was also the site of six arrests made in November as part of multinational efforts to stop an organised crime network from dumping illegal drugs on Australian streets.

The arrests yielded $3 million in cash and a whopping 300kg of meth and cocaine.

But Sydney is only a fraction of the nation’s overall drug problem.

A report in February revealed that Australia is a ‘lucrative’ market for illegal drugs and acts as a hub for the trans-Pacific drug trade.

Key Takeaways

  • Former ABC presenter Ashley Hall has been arrested on drug offences after police allegedly found $600,000 worth of drugs in two hotel rooms he was staying in.
  • Hall previously worked on programs such as AM, PM, and The World Today.
  • Hall has been charged with 23 offences, including supplying a prohibited drug greater than or equal to commercial quantity and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime.
  • He will face court in February and has been refused bail.
Estimates place the Australian illegal drug trade industry’s worth at $11.3 billion annually.

Crime groups operating in the country have also been said to expand their operations to nearby Pacific Islander countries like the Cook Islands and Fiji.

Back home, according to the 2019 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, 16.4 per cent (3.4 million) of Aussies reported using drugs the year prior to the poll.


View attachment 10238
Ashley Hall was once a key figure in ABC Radio. Credit: Twitter/@ashthoughts


The COVID pandemic only made things worse, pushing deaths linked to illegal drug use to record highs seen only in the 90s with five Aussies lost daily in 2020.

If you or anyone you know have a problem with using illegal drugs, we highly encourage getting in touch with services like Narcotics Anonymous Australia by phone at 1300 652 820 or 0488 811 247.

What is your reaction to this news? How severe do you think is Australia’s drug problem?

Tell us your thoughts below!


Source: YouTube/7News Australia
 
These community based orders are just a ticked to keep on offending they are a pathetic wrist slap to criminals and they must laugh at the pathetic judges that impose them major accet seizure and a real jail term are the only real deterrent if they loose everything they own they might think twicebut they just put them in wives or partners names with no comeback the whole judiciary system is as corrupt and broken as the criminals they sentence
 
  • Sad
Reactions: Ricci
A former high-profile ABC presenter has been arrested for possession of a commercial supply of drugs worth $600,000.

Ashley Hall, 52, who once presented major current affairs programs like AM, PM and The World Today for the public broadcaster, was taken into custody by NSW Police last Wednesday, December 7.


Five hundred tablets of MDMA, 100g of cocaine, 3.2 kilos of GHB, 700g of meth, and over 1 kilo of cannabis were seized in an operation shortly after his arrest spanning two Sydney hotels, along with $70,000 in cash.

NSW Police said all items will undergo forensic examination.

Hall was charged with 23 drug offences, including two counts of supplying illegal drugs in large commercial quantities, supplying prohibited drugs on an ongoing basis, and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime.


View attachment 10240
Hall faces drug charges anew after his arrest. Image Credit: Facebook/NSW Police Force


He was refused bail and will remain in police custody until February when he makes his next court appearance.

Section 25 of the NSW Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act of 1985 states that knowingly supplying or taking part in the use of ‘not less than a “large commercial quantity”’ of prohibited drugs can carry a penalty of life imprisonment and/or 5000 penalty units.

This isn’t Hall’s first incident involving illegal drugs.


In January 2021, he was sentenced to a 12-month community corrections order after being arrested for selling illegal drugs in Sydney.

He pled guilty to two counts of supplying prohibited drugs and four counts of drug possession.

Cocaine, cannabis, and LSD were among the drugs seized in the hotel room he was staying at.

The arrest is part of a wider crackdown by NSW Police on illegal drugs in Sydney, which has the distinction of being the country’s top consumer of cocaine with 800mg used for every 1000 Sydneysiders daily on average according to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission.


View attachment 10239
Drugs and cash worth a combined $600,000 was seized in operations related to Hall’s arrest. Image Credit: Facebook/NSW Police Force


The city was also the site of six arrests made in November as part of multinational efforts to stop an organised crime network from dumping illegal drugs on Australian streets.

The arrests yielded $3 million in cash and a whopping 300kg of meth and cocaine.

But Sydney is only a fraction of the nation’s overall drug problem.

A report in February revealed that Australia is a ‘lucrative’ market for illegal drugs and acts as a hub for the trans-Pacific drug trade.

Key Takeaways

  • Former ABC presenter Ashley Hall has been arrested on drug offences after police allegedly found $600,000 worth of drugs in two hotel rooms he was staying in.
  • Hall previously worked on programs such as AM, PM, and The World Today.
  • Hall has been charged with 23 offences, including supplying a prohibited drug greater than or equal to commercial quantity and knowingly dealing with the proceeds of crime.
  • He will face court in February and has been refused bail.
Estimates place the Australian illegal drug trade industry’s worth at $11.3 billion annually.

Crime groups operating in the country have also been said to expand their operations to nearby Pacific Islander countries like the Cook Islands and Fiji.

Back home, according to the 2019 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, 16.4 per cent (3.4 million) of Aussies reported using drugs the year prior to the poll.


View attachment 10238
Ashley Hall was once a key figure in ABC Radio. Credit: Twitter/@ashthoughts


The COVID pandemic only made things worse, pushing deaths linked to illegal drug use to record highs seen only in the 90s with five Aussies lost daily in 2020.

If you or anyone you know have a problem with using illegal drugs, we highly encourage getting in touch with services like Narcotics Anonymous Australia by phone at 1300 652 820 or 0488 811 247.

What is your reaction to this news? How severe do you think is Australia’s drug problem?

Tell us your thoughts below!


Source: YouTube/7News Australia

Drugs, alcohol & gambling destroy so many families & lives. Government managed to control cigarette smoking to a degree so do the same with the other three.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tipsy and Ricci
Drugs are apparently so readily available in the community these days that something drastic needs to be done. I wonder what in this guy's life took him down this path as he seemed to be gainfully employed before. :(
Greed
 
These community based orders are just a ticked to keep on offending they are a pathetic wrist slap to criminals and they must laugh at the pathetic judges that impose them major accet seizure and a real jail term are the only real deterrent if they loose everything they own they might think twicebut they just put them in wives or partners names with no comeback the whole judiciary system is as corrupt and broken as the criminals they sentence
Totally agree. I have said for years that the Judicial system will keep looking after the offenders with meaningless penalties until the judges are affected directly.
Let's see what happens when a gang of teenage thugs invade a judge's house or steal or steal his car or their family is adversely affected by drugs. I'll bet all hell will break loose and we may finally see judges with the nads to start locking them up..
 
  • Like
Reactions: Carol
I'm not judging him . I actually what went wrong in his life
I'm thinking it started of with casual drug taking , leading to more drug taking then addiction which is a sickness

My eldest son at 17 became a heroin addict and there was nothing we could do. After 1 year of us living through hell and scared every single night we would receive a knock on the door saying he was dead, he woke my husband up in the middle of the night asking for help.

With the help from our doctor with medication , we spent the next three days in hell . Holding him , holding a bucket to catch his vomit, putting clothes on his head and just cuddling him
He went cold Turkey, his choice, no methadone.
Now 22 years later we couldn't be more proud of him.

Drugs today are every where and one of the most common party drug is coke.
Young people think they are invincible and it's ok to use drugs on the week ends.
I'm told this by my 23 year old son , my 22 year old daughter, my 28 year old daughter and my 32 year old son inlaw.

It doesn't take long too get hooked , and once they are hooked they are not the same person.

More needs to be done to stop the drugs coming into our country 😒
 
It's none of my business and I don't wish to judge....I don't wish to comment as I don't know what it's taken in his life to get to such depths.
And this has got nothing to do with the ABC so why bring it up or do certain people have a different agenda against the ABC
 
Drugs, alcohol & gambling destroy so many families & lives. Government managed to control cigarette smoking to a degree so do the same with the other three.
But alcohol and cigarettes are also "DRUGS", no real difference really people get hooked on the lot.... I used to be hooked on these 2 but not anymore quit cigs in Feb 2004 and alcohol 3 years ago....unless some buys one for me which is like looking for the proverbial pile of Rocking Horse droppings/ hens teeth
 

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