SYDNEY – Former Australian Test cricketer Stuart MacGill has avoided a prison sentence despite being found guilty of facilitating a $330,000 drug deal beneath his Sydney North Shore restaurant in Neutral Bay.
The 54-year-old spin legend was handed a one-year and ten-month Intensive Corrections Order (ICO) by Judge Nicole Noman in the District Court, who labelled the offence a "colossal lapse of judgment."
MacGill, once hailed as one of Australia’s finest leg-spinners, was found guilty by a jury of helping organise, and being present at, a clandestine meeting between an associate and a street-level drug dealer – identified only as Person A – under his Neutral Bay restaurant.
Judge Noman said the crime marked a significant fall from grace for the cricketing figure, once revered on the field but now mired in controversy and legal battles. Despite the serious nature of the offence, the judge determined that MacGill would serve his sentence in the community under strict supervision, avoiding jail time.
MacGill, who walked free from court following the verdict, has yet to make a public statement.
The ruling has sparked mixed reactions among legal experts and fans alike, with some expressing concern over the leniency of the sentence, given the scale of the drug transaction.
MacGill’s case has gripped the public since his shocking abduction in 2021, after which deeper investigations uncovered his alleged involvement in criminal activity.
The cricketing community now reflects on a once-promising sportsman whose off-field decisions led to a dramatic and public downfall.
