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The spectacular drug-fuelled downfall of former Olympic medallist Scott Miller was precipitated by the “public comedown” from his elite sporting career, a court has heard.
The 47-year-old beamed into Sydney Downing Centre District Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to two counts of supplying a prohibited drug, dealing with property proceeds of crime and participating in a criminal group contributing to criminal activity.
The former swimming star appeared with close cropped hair and white glasses in his prison greens as he faced his fate for driving a shipment of drugs from Sydney to Yass in early 2021.
Court documents claim he made the 280km journey with the $2.2m haul of meth and was met by another man when he arrived.
The former Olympian swimmer had hidden a bag in a secret compartment in the Camry which held eight candles containing nearly 4kg of ice.
He was arrested at his home in Rozelle in Sydney’s inner west in February last year while shirtless. During a subsequent search of his home, the court heard police seized nearly 800g of heroin and more than $72,000 in cash.
Miller pleaded guilty to supplying both drugs and dealing with the cash, which was proceeds of a crime. He also admitted to participating in a criminal group by dealing ice, the court was told.
The Rozelle resident has suffered a spectacular fall from grace since he swam for Australia at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and won silver and bronze medals.
Crown prosecutor David Scully told the court Miller had falsely described himself as a “transporter” of the drugs when he had a senior role in the drug operation.
“The crown submits that Miller is not a mere transporter. He is in the business of supplying drugs for money,” he said.
He argued Miller had organised the transport of the drugs, showed his co-accused how to operate the secret compartment with the drug-filled candles inside, and then stepped back.
“Consistent with someone at the top of the tree, he doesn’t get his hands dirty,” Mr Scully said.
“He’s plainly at the top of the hierarchy of these four offenders.”
The court heard Miller directed his co-accused to separate the meth from the candles after they had been delivered in a message.
“Bro I need the i (allegedly a reference to ice) separated from the wax,” he told his co-accused in a text.
Mr Scully said the former Olympian was supplying the drugs “supposedly at the behest of people overseas” which revealed the high level of his involvement in the criminal activity.
“I’ve got a tiger up my arse bro,” the court heard Miller wrote in a text to the co-accused about a drug deal.
Defence lawyer Arjun Chhabra rejected the assertion his client was “directing” others and labelled it “problematic”.
Mr Chhabra said the former butterfly champion’s role boiled down to “ultimately receiving and passing on” the drugs.
The court was told Miller was motivated to deal drugs when his trucking business failed during the Covid-19 lockdowns.
“(He found) himself in financial dire straits,” Mr Chhabra said.
The downfall of the swimming star was precipitated by his meteoric swimming success at a young age, the court was told.
After winning two gold medals at the 1994 Commonwealth Games and silver and bronze at the 1996 Olympics, his lawyer said Miller was “ill-equipped to move into a life beyond his sporting career”.
“Mr Miller lived an unorthodox, lonely life as a youth which transmogrified into a lonely and depressed life as an adult,” he said.
“A life characterised by substance abuse … and business failure from the very public comedown of his elite sporting career.”
The ex-Olympian’s mental health issues were mismanaged and “treated as an extreme form of homesickness”, the court heard. A psychologist’s report tendered to the court diagnosed him with major depression, anxiety and adjustment disorder.
The “private and shameful matters” of Miller’s life were thrust into the spotlight, his lawyer noted, including his highly publicised infidelity.
Mr Chhabra said his client “took the blame” for the suicide of his ex-wife, model and TV personality Charlotte Dawson, who died in 2014.
The court heard Miller still struggles with unresolved mental health issues and unresolved drug addiction.
“Public shaming and embarrassment has exacerbated his life today,” the barrister said.
The prosecution argued the psychological evidence was “extremely peripherally relevant” and did not reduce his moral culpability.
Mr Chhabra conceded Miller was facing an inevitable custodial sentence, although he pointed to the 21 months he’s already spent behind bars on remand.
Judge Penny Hock will sentence the former butterfly champion and his two co-accused on December 10.
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