Oracle computer salesman Gary Tweddle’s anxious misadventure from a sales ultimatum conference in the Blue Mountains

[This article is work-in-progress, that is until we sign off that all content we have amassed on this topic has been duly over many years since the tragic event has been grammatically and properly included. 

We started compiling this in the same year 2013, but then over time searched for more records, researched more deeply into causation and relevant factors, spoke with Laura locals to get the full picture – if that is possible from our disconnect with not ever knowing Gary. 

We also got distracted, so we put off publishing it because we had ideally desired this to be a complete full article before we published it – like, in a perfect world. 

Yet, we consider that time for publishing this account has become long overdue to share what we have researched with locals and others, and so we’ve decided to start publishing this to share our knowledge on this tragic Blue Mountains missing person search story (the largest to date in the Mountains history). 

Our temporary proviso to readers that it is an ongoing work-in-progress – the text at the end is still source referenced and not yet formatted for publication.  But by publishing  this now, we are driven to finish the article properly, so please bear wish us over the next few days or so.]

1.  Preface

Why this Author:

As a local of The Blue Mountains since 2001, this author (Steven John Ridd) had become a local resident/home owner in nearby Katoomba in the ‘upper’ central Blue Mountains region.
Steve recalls that back in the midst of a cold winter in 2013 news of Gary’s sudden and bizarre disappearance as a corporate conference guest staying at a well-known 4-star resort late at night had caught the widespread emotive concerns of many Blue Mountains locals.
Local immediate search response to find Gary ASAP before he could readily perish from sever cold was a common human instant and a committed focus.  Lead by Police Rescue, with auto-support from the State Emergency Service volunteers and backed by unconditional support of thousands of other volunteering locals, our local Blue Mountains community galvanised in a massive search to find Gary.
It mattered not the cause of  Gary’s disappearance, less so where he was from, but locals knew that the winter weather being freezing at the time made it imperative to find Gary at all costs!
This was a Blue Mountains wide humanitarian mission, and I value sharing this tragic story with readers.   The search for missing Gary actually became the largest missing person search effort in Blue Mountains history.
This author at the time in 2013 captured a lot of reported content and feedback from Leura locals of Sublime Point Road, where the Fairmont Resort (Gary’s corporate stay) is situated.
And mostly, just why? 
Many Blue Mountains locals who were involved trying to find and save Gary deserve an explanation for all their tireless volunteering efforts to search for Garry for weeks and resolve the mental anguish they felt at the time during their search quest under freezing bushland conditions.   No less as do Gary’s loved ones.

Coincidentally, the year 2013 is when Nature Trail first registered as a business.  As a commercial tour operator in the Blue Mountains, we don’t seek out to involve ourselves in tragedies for the sake of it, but moreso to try to better comprehend causations and to learn from them with the goal of leading outdoor recreation to best practice standards.

Maybe from our article and analysis, we ought have send an invoice to the NSW Government’s Forensic Medicine and Coroner’s Court for us having done its avoided task?

About this Article:

 

This article tries to be comprehensive, recognising some controversial backstory, but also to do truth justice – researched, detailed and factual.  It has become a long article of ours – more than most.

So, for reader convenience, we have included a CONTENTS of internal hyperlinks (shortcuts) to each listed heading within this webpage article. 

This article attempts to interpret the truths behind the reported tragic story of one visitor to the Blue Mountains, the late Gary Lloyd Tweddle [29 Nov 1989 – 17 July 2013], whom on one freezing winter’s night in 2013 suddenly vanished from his luxury corporate stay on the outskirts of the village of Leura.

Why are we writing about this?  Well, because no-one else has thus far done so to date and it’s now 2025, more than a decade later.
Also, because no less of the abrogated moral responsibility of the NSW Coroner and SafeWork NSW.  A ‘workplace‘ is defined by SafeWork NSW as “a place where work is carried out for a business or undertaking.” [^Source]
Also, because many media reports were incorrect and contradictory, and based upon presumptions of guessing journalism, such as one news fabrication that Gary’s family had all emigrated from the UK to Australia, that Gary Tweddle had departed the Fairmont wearing only his red checked shirt and no jacket, and the lack of any investigative journalism.
Also, Gary’s death has become yet another poorly investigated and unexplained fatality in the Blue Mountains by the responsible NSW government authorities, namely the  NSW Forensic Medicine and Coroners Court (yet again) and SafeWork NSW (yet again).
Also, the NSW Coroners Court conducted an inquest, but didn’t report its coronial findings.
So what was the point of the inquest?    How can Blue Mountains learn from such tragedies to try to best avoid a repeat?
This is why we critique on such.  No one else seems to give a damn.

 

The NSW government’s extravagant $91.5 million state-of-the-art Forensic Medicine and Coroner’s Court officially opened in Lidcombe (new Sydney) in December 2018.  It was relocated from Glebe (old Sydney), but the same old bad culture accompanied the move – no inquest reports get released to the public.

CONTENTS:

(contents links not sorted yet, sorry)

1. Preface
2. Introduction
3. Prologue – the reported contextual backstory to Gary’s disappearance
4. Oracle’s sales ultimatum conference at this mountain retreat
5. Gary’s state of mind at the time?
6. This missing person massive search
7. His body found weeks later by fluke
8. Gary had tried to walk out of being ‘lost in darkness’
9. Revelation: Gary’s cocaine use
10. Gary’s cocaine deal that night
11. Sydney: World’s cocaine capital
12. Gary’s cocaine habit driven by Oracle bullying?
13. Further Reading

2. Introduction

Gary Tweddle’s unexplained disappearance in the winter of 2013 sparked the largest search for a missing person in Blue Mountains history.
This article is a credit to the more than 1000 Blue Mountains locals (officials along with volunteering ordinary folk) who tried to find and save him under difficult mountainous wintery conditions.

Gary photographed here happy on Sydney Harbour in front of perhaps what looks like The Sydney-Hobart Classic Yacht Regatta out of Rushcutters Bay, pre-Race in December 2012 – clearly in summer).

Gary’s disappearance story begins earlier about this young, smart and ambitious man from England who had gained skills and experience in information technology (IT) in London. Gary Tweddle was a London lad from Reading in home county Berkshire.
Having likely graduated in IT there, he was likely attracted to the finance district of The City in London, England.  His family will know.  By age 23, Gary had managed to secure a career job opportunity working abroad in Australia in corporate IT in Sydney as a young computer salesman for U.S. global software giant Oracle Corporation; at the time the third largest in the world.
Gary departed the UK by himself.  His father David Tweddle remained living in their home town of Reading and worked as vice-president with Oracle in London.   Media reports reveal that his mother had divorced his father and was due to remarry to her new partner, ‘Clive’ in Australia.   So, with his mother based in Australia, Gary would have had an additional incentive to go to Australia.
Young Gary was certainly clever, yet still very young in a corporate sales perspective, so perhaps naive yet keep to prove himself.  Presumably thanks to his father’s internal connections within Oracle, Gary landed a junior sales role with Oracle in Sydney Australia being on the other side of the world from London.  This is all according to media reports.

Oracle Corporation’s Australian office at Stockland’s corporate North Ryde business park on Sydney’s exclusive North Shore.

Sales Executive Gary Tweddle with his girlfriend Anika Haigh at an Oracle Corporation staff party in Sydney, circa 2012-2013.  May be the concerned bloke in the background had wisened up to know the reality of what to expect in Oracle sales?

At the time in 2013, Gary had rented a flat in inner Sydney’s wealthy lower North Shore leafy precinct in the suburb of Cremorne.  This location providing him with a convenient 11km commute to work to Oracle’s Australia Headquarters at 4 Julius Ave, North Ryde NSW 2113 via the M2 motorway.
Cremorne also positioned Gary is a plush elite suburb and convenient Sydney’s appealing harbour-waterfront lifestyle and to Sydney’s CBD nearby.

Gary Tweddle (left) shown partying with his Oracle work mates, perhaps at his Cremorne flat in Sydney before they headed out on the town.  [Photo  taken well before Oracle’s Sales Conference in the Blue Moumntains].

Young people like Gary and his work mates naturally seek fun and excitement and many party frequently, especially the more exuberant personalities.  They are predisposed to take more risks than older folks.   With their natural youth, fitness and boundless energy convincing them that they are pretty much bulletproof.

Regrettably, some seek high-risk pursuits and are more inclined to be influenced by their mates.

Youth risk aversion and propensity for fun (at all costs) can mean taking risks like experimenting with narcotics.   The media reports at the time connected Gary with narcotics.

Drug use is also associated with anxiety.  Workplace stress such as a high pressure sales performance expectation culture can inculcate feelings of inadequacy and this can urge one to turn to coping mechanisms like drugs.

But was Gary using drugs?

At the time of his disappearance this was not publicised.

 

2. Prologue:  a  contextual backstory to Gary’s disappearance

Gary was a new recruit to Oracle, new to Australia and wholly dependent upon his new employer Oracle Corporation for his work, income, welfare, everything.
Young Gary was beholden to Oracle.  May be this is how Oracle management preferred it, so they have a young keen naive lackey, achieve through magic  (not by any training) with a short deadline to achieve an arbitrary peak sales performance else face an expressed threat of crash and burn of the streets, ostracised, and fired.
So, for such an intern to engender ‘anything goes’.
Gary, employed full time (likely on a standard 3 month probation to first prove himself) at his workplace at the time, Gary was required on this occasion by his employer Oracle to compulsorily attend its in-house sales force conference event at an isolated venue out of Sydney in the Blue Mountains.
Gary did so, but what was his state of mind (stress) at the time?
At this isolated conference venue at the Fairmont Resort in the Blue Mountains organised (and controlled) by his employer Oracle, what had Gary experienced?

Day 1: (Monday 15th July 2013)

and then on

Day 2: (Tuesday 16th July 2013)

…such to drive him to run out of the resort by himself at midnight in freezing temperature wearing light clothing and with his mobile phone?

High profit corporates demand high expectations of their sales force, which in turn imposes high pressure to perform or else be fired.  This is especially so by the multinational corporations on Sydney’s north shore like North Sydney, Artarmon, Chatswood and North Ryde (from this author’s own software consulting experience); and indeed in the finance district of The City in London, England.

Gary’s employer, Oracle Corporation, is a lead American multinational computer technology corporation and at the time in 2013 employed 122,000 staff globally, reporting an annual profit of US$10 million out of sales revenues of US$37 million.  This was on par with Oracle’s previous years, but performance was unsatisfactory in the mind of the sales driven culture of its founder and then CEO Larry Ellison, already a billionaire.

Oracle Corporation’s founder, CEO and lead public front man, Larry Ellison.  Oracle is Larry’s alter-ego.

Notably, media records at the time (2013) showed that Oracle’s sales results had been down of late:
‘Oracle posted a 2 percent drop in new software sales and Internet-based software subscriptions to $2.3 billion in its fiscal third quarter, missing its own forecasts and sending its shares sharply lower.’
SOURCE:  ‘Oracle sales down, stock falls‘, 2013-03-21, CRN Australia (technology

Worse though, was that Oracle’s global profit was down considerably and that this looked set to continue, and did:

Oracle has been renowned for its aggressive marketing and sales strategy as well as acquiring competitors to achieve market dominance.  This corporate culture has been driven by the ambitiously competitive personality of its founder in 1977 and then CEO Larry Ellison.

The comparatively shortfall from forecast sales was more of a chink to Larry’s ego and reputation than a devastating impact on Oracle’s successful global software business.

No growth perceived by Ellison as a sales performance failure!

Oracle sales force was hard results driven under CEO Larry Ellison.  Former sales representatives have commented online of their experience working at Oracle:

  • “Oracle is very large and very driven in business. It is easy for employees to feel lost and to fight for survival anyhow they deem fit”
  • “their goal was to hire 22 year-olds right out of college and roughly half our salary.” 
  • “team morale is very low. Teams not hitting their numbers, especially on the SaaS side. Very high attrition rates and overall, cloud products not market ready. Internal processes are driving lots of internal conflict and frustration.”
  • “Oracle was a great job coming out of college, but even after repeated quarters of overachieving I was still micromanaged.” 
  • “worked hard and played hard. Very hard driving to meet objectives”. 
  • “Sales – Very stressful environment.”  
  • “Oracle is more focused on short-term quotas.” 
  • “It was a nice place to work many years ago, but now the company is a creepy greedy place. They have fired 60% of the team since Jul-20 up to date, but only to get more profit, as they opened a low cost support center in Mexico, and they are gradually firing the people working in the US. Usually you receive emails from the management requesting something, and also including something like “the directors are watching you”. The directors are also logged in to the chatroom so you can be careful about what you write. They also hear you phone conversations.”  
  • “Quickly to fire.”
  • “Greedy company. Management promote a culture of fear.”
  • “They’re bussing in college new hires by the thousands.” 

[^Source]

Such was Gary’s new high pressure workplace market culture where the bottom line is everything.

Gary would have been one of those many IT college graduates at aged just 23 – keen, trying hard to please, young and naïve with immaturity to be able to cope with the demanding corporate sales target pressures and having little sales experience.  [Ed: Been there!]

So, Gary was likely out of his depth at such a powerful and controlling large male-dominated organisation trying to sell Oracle’s complex software systems to big companies.

Gary, being far from home on the other side of the world, would have in front of mind his sense of financial dependency upon his employer, Oracle.  His tenure in Oracle sales was wholly dependent on him delivering their new sales results week in, week out.

So Oracle owned Gary.  It would have been week-by-week performance survival.  He had nowhere else to go, save the prospect of being fired for poor performance and returning back to London as a failure.  May be his girlfriend knew or sensed this pressure in otherwise happy Gary.

Why discuss Gary’s employer culture?.  Read on.

3. Oracle’s Sales ultimatum conference at an isolated mountain retreat?

During a cold wintery July of 2013, Gary, along with Oracle’s Australian sales force (team), were required to attend Oracle sales ‘team’s fully-paid mid-week conference at the 4-star Fairmont Resort and Spa in Leura in the famous Blue Mountains outside Sydney.  Media reports state there were 46 of them, so a sizeable group and likely the entire Oracle sales ‘team’ in Sydney.
Perhaps Oracle’s extreme pressure upon its young sales team had been ramped up to anxiety crescendo?
So, instead of Oracle’s sales pep-talk conference mid-week in July 2013 being a reward to the team, perhaps Oracle’s underlying message staged at its isolated sales conference in the Blue Mountains was a ‘do-or-die’ sales performance ultimatum to this young team, if not a last supper?

May be Gary’s sales colleagues at Oracle at the time may have more to say, so long as they are no longer under Oracle’s spell.

From this author’s corporate team event experience, following standard corporate procedure presumably Oracle’s sales conference took place from arriving from Sydney at the Fairmont Resort likely by chartered coach on the Monday 15th July 2013.

Gary shown participating in Oracle corporate team sports during a work lunch break on the lawn area under Sydney Harbour Bridge off Lower Fort Street.  [Ed: Been there]

The first day would have been in-house at the Fairmont utilising a very private team unifying U-shaped seating arrangement say in the Fairmont’s smaller Blaxland function room which accommodates 46 seated guests.

Classic corporate team building U-shaped seating arrangement, nowhere to hide.  [Ed: Been there]

Only those 46 Oracle sales staff in attendance know what was discussed on Day 1 of the sales conference.
Given what Gary decided to do following night, maybe the discussion wasn’t a rewarding celebration by the corporation, but Oracle management’s threatening dressing down ultimatum in light of the 2013 zero sales growth results.
On the second night of Oracle’s internal sales conference on Tuesday 16th July 2013, Gary attended an outside pre-booked dinner along with a group of his 45 work colleagues from Oracle from 7pm at the up-market Silk’s Brasserie in Leura Mall, situated about 3km from the Fairmont Resort.
Of relevance, the urban backstreet route between Silk’s in Leura Mall, on the high street, and the location of the Fairmont Resort on the south-eastern cliff edge of the village is not straight forward but rather complicated for visitors to find, especially at night.

The route between then Silk’s Brasserie and the Fairmont Resort is a zig zag along the backstreets of Leura.

Being a Tuesday and normally closed, Silk’s Brasserie would have hosted this corporate dinner as a privately booked function for the whole restaurant, re-setting the tables for the Oracle sales ‘team’.

Silk’s Brasserie when it was at 128 The Mall in Leura (before the landlord hiked the rent in 2020, so prompting the restaurant relocation to nearby Wentworth Falls)

Presumably all 46 Oracle sales staff (a coach load) would have pre-arranged their transfer to/from the Fairmont Resort and Leura Mall together by chartered coach from Sydney -likely Murrays Coaches.
The Silk’s brasserie owner/manager Stewart Robinson later stated to the media that Mr Tweddle had not had a lot to drink during dinner, but remembered him being ”unsteady” and ”wobbly” on his feet as Mr Tweddle left.  Mr Robinson said that he observed by the time Mr Tweddle left just after 10.30pm, Mr Tweddle was “affected by something“, despite hardly having any alcohol to drink.
The taxi driver from Leura-Katoomba Radio Cabs told Fairfax Media he remembered dropping Mr Tweddle with three of his work colleagues back at the Fairmont Resort.  The taxi driver said “he was wasted, seriously wasted“.

This is a telling observation, which we shall elaborated on.
It means that Gary would have missed the return coach charter from Silks Brasserie back to the Fairmont Resort and elected to stay on at Silks with a few selected work colleagues.  So meaning that a taxi return trip became their only sensible option for the 3km journey back to the Fairmont Resort.   It was mid-winter, near midnight and freezing.

4. Gary’s state of mind at the time?

Upon return to the Fairmont Resort, Gary’s work colleagues account that he went to his room where he spent a short time with a few of them.  Gary spoke about him going to get drugs (and presumably return).   Apparently, Gary was on a mission to keep the party going.
So was Gary at the time under the influence of drugs but not alcohol or both?  If so which drugs?
Soon after Mr Tweddle was dropped off, Fairmont Resort security footage captures him running out of the Fairmont reception.  Media reports falsely stated that he was wearing only his red checked shirt (below) without his jacket or glasses.

Gary Tweddle in his red checked shirt with his girlfriend Anika Haigh  

However, police had formally stated that Gary Tweddle was described as “being of Caucasian appearance, 165-170cm tall, medium build, brown eyes with short brown hair.  At the time of his disappearance he was wearing blue jeans, a black jacket and checked shirt.”

Gary had been last seen waving at a car 400 metres from the Fairmont Resort about 12.15am early on the Wednesday morning. 
A motorist later told police that Gary was seen standing in the middle of the road (Sublime Point Road) talking on his mobile phone.  It would have placed him on Sublime Point Road heading south just past Orchard Lane.
According to four of his work colleagues, Gary spent 17 minutes on a mobile phone call after midnight before being cut off on the Tuesday night that he disappeared from the Fairmont.
Four of his colleagues spoke with him on mobile loudspeaker as they tried to figure out where Gary was.    They said that Gary didn’t sound panicked on the phone, only that he was near a main road and was lost.

“light on a hill”

 

Police said he told his colleagues he was then running and sounded as he was jumping or leaping over things as he spoke to them.  They pleaded with him to stay where he was and to look in a letter box to find out exactly where he was.
Gary then told them he was heading towards a “light on a hill” before his phone battery died.
Mr Tweddle’s girlfriend Anika Haigh received a 3.30am phone call on the Wednesday at the couple’s Cremorne home from one of Mr Tweddle’s work colleagues, who told her that Gary was missing and that she needed to file a missing person’s report to the police so that an immediate search could be formally initiated; which she did.

5. The missing person massive  search

The next morning (Wednesday) an immediate and extensive search was co-ordinated by local Blue Mountains Police Rescue with the assistance of volunteers from the NSW State Emergency Service, Rural Fire service volunteers and volunteer local bushwalking clubs’ members.
Police Senior Constable De Jong from the riot squad took charge of the land and air search for Gary Tweddle.  Gary is still out there waiting for us, there are 200 people looking,” he posted on his Facebook page.

Senior Constable De Jong from the riot squad briefs officers prior to recommencing the search for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan

Mr Tweddle’s girlfriend quickly created a Facebook page entitled “Have you seen Gary Tweddle?” which ended up attracting more than 4,500 likes, such was the mystery and community intrigue in both the Blue Mountains and Sydney about his unexplained disappearance.

The rugged area around The Fairmont Resort in Leura is situated on the plateau above Jamison Valley with its extensive 600m escarpment cliff-line featuring alternative headlands and incised gorges covered in dense natural bushland.

Aerial View of the Fairmont Resort and Spa at the top of the image, juxtaposed atop the incised plateau edge above the rugged Jamison Valley to the south below.

Friends talked Gary Tweddle for 17 minutes before his phone went dead and he went missing a week ago in the Blue Mountains.
MISSING man Gary Tweddle spent 17 minutes on a mobile phone call to colleagues before being cut off on the night he disappeared.
MISSING man Gary Tweddle spent 17 minutes on a mobile phone call to colleagues before being cut off on the night he disappeared in the Blue Mountains.
Mr Tweddle had rung a work colleague shortly after midnight and in a 17-minute call with four colleagues on loudspeaker they tried to figure out where Gary was after he said he’d got separated from his group after dinner and was lost in bushland near a main road.
He was last seen waving at a car 400m from the Watkins Rd resort about 12.15am.
 The rugged area around The Fairmont Resort and the gorges rescue teams are searching. Picture: Google Maps
The rugged area around The Fairmont Resort and the gorges rescue teams are searching. Picture: Google Maps
 A police officer briefs members of the SES before resuming the search for 23-year-old Gary Tweddle who was last seen leaving the Fairmont Resort in Leura in the early hours of last Tuesday. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
A police officer briefs members of the SES before resuming the search for 23-year-old Gary Tweddle who was last seen leaving the Fairmont Resort in Leura in the early hours of last Tuesday. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
A week after his disappearance from a Blue Mountains Resort his family is still holding out hope he will be found alive.
Father David said the family, along with hundreds of SES volunteers and police, are still scouring more than 14 sq km of rugged bushland near the Fairmont Resort in Leura where the British-born IT salesman, 23, went missing on Tuesday night.
Gary Tweddle and his partner Anika Haigh. Gary is wearing same shirt he went missing in. Picture: Supplied
Gary Tweddle and his partner Anika Haigh. Gary is wearing same shirt he went missing in. Picture: Supplied
Senior Constable De Jong from the riot squad briefs officers prior to recommencing the search for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
Senior Constable De Jong from the riot squad briefs officers prior to recommencing the search for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
“Gary is still out there waiting for us, there are 200 people looking,” he posted on his Facebook page yesterday.
“We have searched the cliffs and gullies with choppers, absailers and bushwalkers.
Police continue the search in rugged terrain in bushland in Wentworth Falls. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
Police continue the search in rugged terrain in bushland in Wentworth Falls. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
“It’s minus five up top with the wind. There is no sign of a down scale (in the search) yet.”
Girlfriend Anika Haigh received a 3.30am phone call on Tuesday at the couple’s Cremorne home from one of Mr Tweddle’s work colleagues, who told her he was missing and she needed to file a missing person’s report.
 Police from the diving unit search a dam at Leura Golf Course for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
Police from the diving unit search a dam at Leura Golf Course for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
David Tweddle said the family was indebted to police and volunteers looking for his son.
“I do not think there are enough words in any vocabulary to say thank you to the hundreds of volunteers that have given their weekend to find Gaz,” he said
“The police have been unbelievably amazing and the Fairmont Resort could not have done more, it is truly breathtaking to see and experience all the help and support we are receiving.”

“We have searched the cliffs and gullies with choppers, abseilers and bushwalkers.  It’s minus five up top with the wind. There is no sign of a down scale (in the search) yet.”

Police search in rugged terrain in bushland around Leura and Wentworth Falls.

Police from the diving unit search a dam at Leura Golf Course for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan

The search was to become the largest search in Blue Mountains history.

Gary and his girlfriend Anika Haigh. Gary is wearing same shirt he went missing in. Picture: Supplied
Gary was originally from Reading in Greater London, and had emigrated to Australia with his family in June 2005 at the age of fifteen.   He lived in Sydney’s Northshore suburb of Cremorne and worked as a sales consultant with American multinational computer technology corporation Oracle Corporation in North Ryde.   Gary had been invited to the company retreat at the Fairmont after being marked as a “high achiever”.
His mother, Carol Streatfield, who also lives in Australia, had previously flown to the Blue Mountains to join the search for her son.  She said the phone call from her son’s partner, Anika, telling her that he was missing was the first step in the most “heartbreaking journey” of her life.
Gary’s mother Carol Streatfield “intimate celebration of our family unity.  Gary was to give me away that morning and this decision was difficult to come to, however made easy by the fact that Gary was adamant that after 15 years we tie the knot.  It was a day full of emotions with a common theme – love and hope for Gary, for us and for our family.   Gary was the most positive person I know. Today he would say to me: ‘Just get on with it, mother’, and so I will. I remain as positive as ever as Gary would want me to. I just want my beautiful boy back. There is always love and hope and it is these two things that I will hold on to, always.”

“after 15 years we tie the knot”?  So Gary was just 8 years old when his parents divorced.  It is unknown when Gary’s mother travelled/emigrated to Australia.

In a statement issued by the Foreign Office last month, she said:
“On the mountain my days were filled with sirens, noise, searching, tireless walking and door-knocking.
I repeatedly followed the track I believed he had taken in the hopes of finding a clue. Every pole and tree were covered with his beautiful face.  However, it was on a piece of A4 paper with a ‘missing’ heading. 
At one point I was so exhausted I found a bench to sit on in the middle of a bush track, and as I sat down there to the left of me was Gary’s photo.  It was a small comfort as I stroked his face, kissed him and told him how much I loved him and that I will never give up trying to find him, ever.”

The original leaflet collected by the author in August 2013.

Carol Streatfield was due to marry her new partner, Clive in what she described as an..
“intimate celebration of our family unity.  Gary was to give me away that morning and this decision was difficult to come to, however made easy by the fact that Gary was adamant that after 15 years we tie the knot.  It was a day full of emotions with a common theme – love and hope for Gary, for us and for our family.   Gary was the most positive person I know. Today he would say to me: ‘Just get on with it, mother’, and so I will. I remain as positive as ever as Gary would want me to. I just want my beautiful boy back. There is always love and hope and it is these two things that I will hold on to, always.”

Clearly, Carol was very close to her son Gary.

Gary’s father David, a vice-president with the same company his son worked for, flew out to Australia from his home in Berkshire in England in the first week of Gary going missing to help with the search effort.

So, Gary’s upbringing seemed problematic and perhaps lacking parental direction at a critical impressionable time in his childhood.

Over many weeks over 1000 searchers, police, SES volunteers and locals scoured more than fourteen square kilometres of rugged and dense bushland near the Fairmont Resort and the Sublime Point Escarpment.

David said the family was indebted to police and volunteers looking for his son.  “I do not think there are enough words in any vocabulary to say thank you to the hundreds of volunteers that have given their weekend to find Gaz,” he said.  “The police have been unbelievably amazing and the Fairmont Resort could not have done more, it is truly breathtaking to see and experience all the help and support we are receiving.”

6. His body found weeks later by accident

Gary’s body was ultimately discovered on Monday 2nd September 2013 at around 4pm, just over six weeks (47 days) after his last mobile phone contact around 12:30am on Wednesday 17th July that year.

Police said at the time that a body believed to be Gary Tweddle was found by an ambulance rescue helicopter by accident during a training exercise in the Jamison Valley.

Paramedics on board a NSW Ambulance Service helicopter on a routine training exercise in the Jamison Valley saw what initially appeared to be a practice mannequin suspended up a tree about 50 metres down a cliff face.

Upon closer inspection by the helicopter crew, they realised it was a body and so contacted police.   The body was spotted in a tree growing from a crevice in the cliff face about 50m down a 300m cliff edge in dense bushland below a rough bush track off the end of West Street at Sublime Point escarpment’s western side.   The site was inaccessible by foot.

Blue Mountains crime manager Mick Bostock said police rescue officers would not be able to retrieve the body until dawn on Tuesday.

“It’s too dangerous, they are going to have to wait to retrieve the body tomorrow,’’ Inspector Bostock said.  ”It’s very likely it is Gary but we will have to wait and see,” he said. “Earlier this afternoon an ambulance helicopter was involved in a training exercise near bushland at Leura in a remote area where there is a rock climb known ‘Sweet Dreams’. They have located what appears to be a body.’’

Police said there was a good chance the body was Mr Tweddle but could not be certain until tomorrow.   “The area can only be reached by abseiling down the rock face,” Inspector Bostock said.  “The body appears as though its wearing clothing,” he said.

Police Helicopter despatched to the escarpment site.  (Picture:  AAP Dean Lewins, AAP)
The body had a red checked shirt matching the description of the one Mr Tweddle was wearing on the night he went missing, said a police officer at the scene.   The location was 2km by road from the Fairmont Resort and 1km south of where Gary had tried to wave down car just before midnight on Tuesday 16th July 2013 – the last time he was seen alive.

Since sunset was at 5pm, the police rescue had to delay retrieval until the following day.

They then abseiled down the cliff off the western end of West Street.
“I can confirm we have found a deceased male … in what’s described as a slot in the cliff line,” Superintendent Darryl Jobson said.
The police have been in close contact with Mr Tweddle’s family members.  “The family have been very strong and stoic throughout. It’s absolutely amazing to see the strength they’ve been able to garner from each other,” said Superintendent Jobson.  “They have gone through a rollercoaster of emotions, as you can well appreciate. They are really after a sense of closure.”
Gary’s devastated father, David Tweddle, and stepmother, Michelle Ewens, had hoped for a miracle.  Tweddle’s father David posted on Facebook that he hoped the body was his son.  “Lets hope it is him,” he wrote, adding it would be a “long day ahead”.
The body was later that week identified and confirmed to be that of Garry Tweddle.  The police handed their brief to the coroner, with the belief his death was accidental.
Mr Tweddle’s girlfriend Anika Haigh travelled from Queensland to the Blue Mountains in the hope there would be a resolution following today’s rescue mission.
Ms Haigh wrote on Facebook:
“Please know that nothing has been confirmed at this stage but I hope in a few hours we will have an answer either way.  “One thing I know for certain is that Gary will come home one day – his fight, determination & ‘never give up’ attitude that we all loved so much about him will guide him. Your time of hide & seek needs to end now though please. Time to come home where you belong. I love you.”
Police declared his disappearance as a suspected, accidental death in a report filed with the coroner at the time.
It can be surmised with the benefit of hindsight that Gary, being in area he had no knowledge about, and by himself on foot at night, had likely become disorientated.  Departing the Fairmont the road leads straight along Sublime Point Road winding in a southerly direction through outer residential Leura.  The road is marked with double lines that become dashed lines like a main road.  The road then passes through bushland and is dimly lit at night.
Upon reaching the junction of Sublime Point Road and West Street, Gary would have seen distant housing lights to the west.  In his last mobile phone conversation with his colleagues he spoke of being in buishland and seeing a light on a hill.  This is along Cliff Drive Katoomba about 2km westward.

7.  Gary had tried to walk out of being lost in the darkness

We chose this heading both on a psychological sense of self as well as a pragmatic physical attempt by Gary not to return to his stay at the Fairmont  along the dark road he had walked but to persist with reaching his cocaine rendezvous deal.

 

‘Have you seen Gary Tweddle?’, NSW Police Force Facebook, 2013-07-28,  https://www.facebook.com/nswpoliceforce/photos/a.395208846184/10151597366491185/?type=3
‘Friends talked Gary Tweddle for 17 minutes before his phone went dead and he went missing a week ago in the Blue Mountains’, 20130723, by Ben McClellan, The Daily Telegraph,  ^https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/friends-talked-gary-tweddle-for-17-minutes-before-his-phone-went-dead-and-he-went-missing-a-week-ago-in-the-blue-mountains/news-story/fa5070c227c2b112719ffb4685e4ffe1
‘Gary Tweddle’s body found in Blue Mountains, police believe’, by Alex Ivett, 3-Sep-2013, News, ^https://www.australiantimes.co.uk/news/gary-tweddles-body-found-in-blue-mountains-police-believe/
‘Body found in Australia during search for missing Briton Gary Tweddle’, 2013-09-13, ^ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/02/body-australia-missing-gary-tweddle
‘Body found in Australia bushland is ‘missing British man Gary Tweddle’, 20130903, by David Mercer, ^https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/body-found-in-australia-bushland-is-missing-british-man-gary-tweddle-8795875.html
Subsequent field research conducted by the author confirms that the lights would be of the holiday complex Cloud Nine which is perched on the escarpment cliff top and which is lit up and very distinguishable from this West Street junction.
‘Cloud Nine’ tourist accommodation complex is very visible from West Street 2km across the Jamison Valley.
It is surmised that Gary decided to head in that direction, since Sublime Point Road becomes quite dark beyond West Street.  However Gary would not have realised the wild chasm situated off the western end of West Street through a short section of bushland.  The narrow bush track is barely distinguishable and he would have found it only by the light of his mobile phone.  He then accidently stumbled off the clifftop.  Who knows?
Due to the extremely rough terrain and looking darkness, the body couldn’t be accessed on foot until the afternoon of the following day.  It was winched from the cliff edge, and then formally identified some days later as that of missing Gary Tweddle.  Police at the time said they were treating Mr Tweddle’s disappearance as “accidental death”.
Police contacted his family to inform them of the discovery.  Mr Tweddle’s girlfriend, Ms Anika Haigh, told friends and family that “the sun is beginning to rise on a day that we have all been hoping would never come”.  She wrote on her Facebook page:
“A body has been found in the area of Gary’s disappearance and today it will be retrieved and identified. Please know that nothing has been confirmed at this stage but I hope in a few hours we will have an answer either way.  “One thing I know for certain is that Gary will… come home one day – his fight, determination & ‘never give up’ attitude that we all loved so much about him will guide him.”  She added that it was time for him “to come home where you belong”.
In an earlier interview with Fairfax Media Ms Haigh said she had lost her best friend.
”My best friend has been taken from me and it’s so hard. It’s horrible, I just miss him so much. My heart aches, it hurts, I didn’t even know I had these emotions. ‘He is one of the most kind, caring, loving, and passionate person that I know and he is extremely determined,” Ms Haigh said. “He is a very loved person and we are touched and overwhelmed by all the friends an family that have come and helped in this situation.”
“Light on the hill”, ‘Cloud Nine’, ‘Sweet Dreams’ indeed.
Each year 35,000 people are reported missing in Australia – one person every 15 minutes. In NSW last year, 12 409 people were reported missing, of those 84 remain missing.

 

 

[NOTE:  The following content is in draft form, and shall be updated shortly]

8.  Revelation: Gary’s cocaine use 

Vertigo
Cocaine withdrawal
Cocaine withdrawal occurs when someone who has used a lot of cocaine cuts down or quits taking the drug. Symptoms of withdrawal can occur even if the user is not completely off cocaine and still has some of the drug in their blood.
Causes
Cocaine produces a sense of euphoria (extreme mood elevation) by causing the brain to release higher than normal amounts of some chemicals. But, cocaine’s effects on other parts of the body can be very serious, or even deadly.
When cocaine use is stopped or when a binge ends, a crash follows almost right away. The cocaine user has a strong craving for more cocaine during a crash. Other symptoms include fatigue, lack of pleasure, anxiety, irritability, sleepiness, and sometimes agitation or extreme suspicion or paranoia.
Cocaine withdrawal often has no visible physical symptoms, such as the vomiting and shaking that accompany withdrawal from heroin or alcohol.
https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/000947.htm
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Does Cocaine Cause Vertigo?
By The Recovery Village | Editor Camille Renzoni
Medically Reviewed By Dr. Conor Sheehy, PharmD, BCPS, CACP | Last Updated: April 26, 2022
Editorial Policy | Research Policy
https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/cocaine-addiction/does-cocaine-cause-vertigo/
Vertigo is a side effect of heavy cocaine use. To avoid cocaine-induced vertigo, it’s best to stop using cocaine.
Yes, cocaine use can cause vertigo, but it is rare. Cocaine use does not affect the ear’s motion-sensing system as much as other drugs, like alcohol, do. However, using large amounts of cocaine or overdosing on cocaine may produce vertigo symptoms.
Article at a Glance:
Vertigo can happen to people who use cocaine heavily
Heavy cocaine use is more than two grams per week
The medical community does not completely understand how cocaine causes vertigo
Stop heavy cocaine use to treat and prevent vertigo
Medications used to treat vertigo can be dangerous for someone using cocaine
What Causes Vertigo?
Vertigo is the sensation of motion of either the self or the surroundings in the absence of actual motion. Vertigo is a feeling of moving or spinning even when the body is still.
The medical community has not yet specifically studied cocaine and vertigo, so it is not well understood. Vertigo is a symptom reported by people who use cocaine heavily, but it is not common enough or dangerous enough to study further.
Vertigo and the Inner Ear
In each ear, three semicircular canals are filled with fluid. Within this fluid are little hairs attached to nerve cells that send signals to the brain. When a person moves their head, the fluid moves in the opposite direction for a brief moment, bending the hairs and creating three sets of electrical signals that are sent to the brain. Since these three sets of hairs are bent at different angles, the brain can use these signals to compute motion and produce the feeling of movement.
How Cocaine Use Could Cause Vertigo
Cocaine may cause vertigo in a few different ways:
1. Cocaine might alter the signals sent between the brain and the ear: Cocaine use increases the levels of epinephrine, norepinephrine and dopamine in brain cells (neurons). It may be over-activating them and altering the signals.
2. Cocaine can decrease blood flow to the cells of the ear: Cocaine causes blood vessels to constrict (tighten) and deliver less oxygen to some tissue. If these tissues lose blood flow and oxygen for a long time, the cells can die or malfunction.
3. Cocaine makes people more sensitive to sounds: People might react more quickly or in a more tremorous or twitchy manner when they’re using cocaine. This behavior would cause rapid acceleration and deceleration that might give the feeling of vertigo.
Chronic Cocaine Use and Vertigo
Symptoms like vertigo do not usually show up until a person uses a large amount of cocaine over a long time. Heavy cocaine use is defined as two or more grams per week. A gram of cocaine is about ten lines.
Some symptoms of heavy cocaine use, which can be long-term, include:
• Anxiety
• Irritability
• Muscle Twitching
• Paranoia
• Seizure
• Restless
• Sudden Death
• Tremor
• Vertigo
Treating Cocaine-Induced Vertigo
Vertigo is treated by treating the underlying cause. If heavy cocaine use is the reason a person is experiencing vertigo, then the most important first step is to stop cocaine use. Treating cocaine use might include outpatient treatment with a psychiatrist, or it might include inpatient rehab with a team of medical professionals to treat the whole patient.
There are medications for dizziness, but they have a lot of side effects that might be dangerous for someone who uses cocaine heavily. Medications should be used for the shortest time possible because of their side effects.
In situations where cocaine is not involved, vertigo is managed by watchful waiting, if it is mild. Most vertigo symptoms go away on their own. If they do not, a person can minimize symptoms by changing positions slowly, looking straight ahead while walking, or turning the entire body when looking left or right.
Heavy cocaine use is serious and can lead to harm and even death if left untreated. To avoid cocaine-induced vertigo, and cocaine addiction, avoid cocaine use altogether.
•
Editor – Camille Renzoni
Cami Renzoni is a creative writer and editor for The Recovery Village. As an advocate for behavioral health, Cami is certified in mental health first aid and encourages people who face substance use disorders to ask for the help they deserve. Read more
Medically Reviewed By – Dr. Conor Sheehy, PharmD, BCPS, CACP
Dr. Sheehy completed his BS in Molecular Biology at the University of Idaho and went on to complete his Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) at the University of Washington in Seattle. Read more
Cocaine related topics:
Signs, Symptoms & Side Effects of Crack Cocaine AddictionTramadol Side EffectsAmphetamine AddictionCocaine AddictionCocaine StatisticsCocaine & the HeartHow Long Does Cocaine Stay In Your System?Can Cocaine Cause Internal Bleeding?Cocaine & SleepCocaine Comedown, Withdrawal & Detox
All Related Topics
Sources
________________________________________
ScienceDaily. “Chronic, Heavy Cocaine Use Associated With Long-Lasting Impaired Function.”“>“Chron[…] Function.” 1999. Accessed May 14, 2019.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. “What are the long-term effects of cocaine use?”“>“What […]caine use?” 2016. Accessed May 15, 2019.
Guido R. Zanni. “Vertigo: Is Your Patient’s Head Spinning?”“>“Verti[…] Spinning?” Pharmacy Times, 2012. Accessed 14 May 2019.
Medical Disclaimer
The Recovery Village aims to improve the quality of life for people struggling with substance use or mental health disorder with fact-based content about the nature of behavioral health conditions, treatment options and their related outcomes. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare providers.
*
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How can I tell if someone is using drugs?
https://positivechoices.org.au/parents/how-can-i-tell-if-someone-is-using-drugs
There are some signs and behaviours that may raise concern that your child is using drugs, however many of these signs are also common among teenagers so it’s important not to jump to conclusions.
Some signs of drug use may include:
Withdrawal from friends and family
Change in friendships or problems with friends
A drop in grades or attendance at school
Signs of sadness, depression, agitation or hostility
An increase in borrowing money
Evidence of drug paraphernalia or missing prescription drugs.
Drugs have different effects depending on the type of drug taken and whether it is a depressant (e.g. alcohol) or a stimulant (e.g. methamphetamine).
Some signs that someone may be under the influence of a drug include:
Enlarged pupils, bloodshot or glassy eyes
Increased energy and confidence
Loss of inhibitions
Loss of coordination
Aggressive behaviour
Trembling, twitches
Paranoia (being extremely suspicious)
Hallucinations (hearing or seeing things that aren’t really there)
Nausea and vomiting
Complaints of stomach cramps, blurred vision, headaches or dizziness
Exhaustion, fatigue or insomnia (being unable to sleep)
Irritability and moodiness
Changes to eating patterns such as eating less or more
Anxiety symptoms such as panic attacks, dizziness, sweating, dry mouth, muscle aches and headaches.
Remember that drugs can affect different people in different ways. For more information about different drugs and their specific effects, see our drug factsheets page.
If you are worried that your child may be using alcohol or other drugs, Positive Choices provides tips to help you start a conversation, information about the warning signs that someone might be dependent on a drug and where to get help and advice.
Evidence Base
This factsheet was developed following expert review at the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use at the University of Sydney and the National Drug & Alcohol Research Centre at the University of New South Wales.
*
Ben McClellan, DailyTelegraph
July 23, 2013 9:53am
https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/friends-talked-gary-tweddle-for-17-minutes-before-his-phone-went-dead-and-he-went-missing-a-week-ago-in-the-blue-mountains/news-story/fa5070c227c2b112719ffb4685e4ffe1
MISSING man Gary Tweddle spent 17 minutes on a mobile phone call to colleagues before being cut off on the night he disappeared in the Blue Mountains.
Mr Tweddle had rung a work colleague shortly after midnight and in a 17-minute call with four colleagues on loudspeaker they tried to figure out where Gary was after he said he’d got separated from his group after dinner and was lost in bushland near a main road.
He was last seen waving at a car 400m from the Watkins Rd resort about 12.15am.
The rugged area around The Fairmont Resort and the gorges rescue teams are searching. Picture: Google Maps A police officer briefs members of the SES before resuming the search for 23-year-old Gary Tweddle who was last seen leaving the Fairmont Resort in Leura in the early hours of last Tuesday. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
A week after his disappearance from a Blue Mountains Resort his family is still holding out hope he will be found alive.
Father David said the family, along with hundreds of SES volunteers and police, are still scouring more than 14 sq km of rugged bushland near the Fairmont Resort in Leura where the British-born IT salesman, 23, went missing on Tuesday night.
 Gary Tweddle and his partner Anika Haigh. Gary is wearing same shirt he went missing in. Picture: Supplied
 Senior Constable De Jong from the riot squad briefs officers prior to recommencing the search for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
“Gary is still out there waiting for us, there are 200 people looking,” he posted on his Facebook page yesterday.
“We have searched the cliffs and gullies with choppers, absailers and bushwalkers.
 Police continue the search in rugged terrain in bushland in Wentworth Falls. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
“It’s minus five up top with the wind. There is no sign of a down scale (in the search) yet.”
Girlfriend Anika Haigh received a 3.30am phone call on Tuesday at the couple’s Cremorne home from one of Mr Tweddle’s work colleagues, who told her he was missing and she needed to file a missing person’s report.
 Police from the diving unit search a dam at Leura Golf Course for Gary Tweddle. Picture: Matthew Sullivan
David Tweddle said the family was indebted to police and volunteers looking for his son.
“I do not think there are enough words in any vocabulary to say thank you to the hundreds of volunteers that have given their weekend to find Gaz,” he said
“The police have been unbelievably amazing and the Fairmont Resort could not have done more, it is truly breathtaking to see and experience all the help and support we are receiving.”
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Gary Tweddle’s body found in Blue Mountains, police believe
Australian police have reached a body in the Blue Mountains which they believe to be that of missing British-Australian man Gary Tweddle. The body was found 2km from where the 23-year-old was last seen alive seven weeks ago.
by Alex Ivett, 3-Sep-2013, News,
https://www.australiantimes.co.uk/news/gary-tweddles-body-found-in-blue-mountains-police-believe/
AUSTRALIAN police have reached a body in the Blue Mountains which they believe to be that of missing British-Australian man Gary Tweddle.
A striped shirt found near the body matched the description of the one Mr Tweddle was wearing on the night he went missing, said a police officer at the scene.
An ambulance rescue helicopter spotted the man’s body on Monday afternoon. It was located in a tree growing from a crevice in a cliff at Leura in an area inaccessible by foot.
Mr Tweddle, 23, went missing seven weeks ago from a work conference for his company Oracle following a night out with colleagues.
Police officers have abseiled down the cliff at the end of Sublime Point Road and were working to secure the body on Tuesday. However police said it would be several hours until the body was recovered and formally identified.
“I can confirm we have found a deceased male … in what’s described as a slot in the cliff line,” Superintendent Darryl Jobson said.
The police have been in close contact with Mr Tweddle’s family members.
“The family have been very strong and stoic throughout. It’s absolutely amazing to see the strength they’ve been able to garner from each other,” said Superintendent Jobson
“They have gone through a rollercoaster of emotions, as you can well appreciate.
“They are really after a sense of closure.”
Mr Tweddle’s girlfriend Anika Haigh travelled from Queensland to the Blue Mountains in the hope there would be a resolution following today’s rescue mission.
“Please know that nothing has been confirmed at this stage but I hope in a few hours we will have an answer either way,” Ms Haigh wrote on Facebook.
“One thing I know for certain is that Gary will come home one day – his fight, determination & ‘never give up’ attitude that we all loved so much about him will guide him.
“Your time of hide & seek needs to end now though please. Time to come home where you belong. I love you.”
Mr Tweddle moved from the UK in June 2005 at the age of 15, and lived in Sydney prior to his disappearance.
He was last heard from in the early hours of 16 July when he spoke on the phone to colleagues for 17 minutes, saying he was lost in bushland but could see a light on the hill.
Police have declared his disappearance as a suspected, accidental death in a report filed with the coroner last week.
Timeline
– Gary Tweddle goes to a work dinner at Silk’s Brasserie in Leura with 45 colleagues from Oracle. The bill is paid at 10.41pm.
– Mr Tweddle gets into a Katoomba Leura radio cab with three work colleagues about 11pm. He is helped into the taxi and is unsteady on his feet. The group is dropped off at the Fairmont Resort.
– Several people continue to drink in one of the rooms at the resort. Police say Mr Tweddle only has a few sips of a beer before he leaves to go to the reception/foyer area.
– Tweddle runs out of the Fairmont main entrance about midnight. A short time later he rings a colleague and says he is lost. The conversation lasts 17 minutes. Police say it sounds as if he is running and jumping during the conversation.
– A car drives past Mr Tweddle as he stands in the middle of Watkins Road talking on his phone at 12.15am. The car does not stop. Mr Tweddle’s phone battery dies or is switched off and no one has heard or seen him since.
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Police says he told his colleagues he was running and sounded as he was jumping or leaping over things as he spoke to them.
They pleaded with him to stay where he was and to look in a letter box to find out exactly where he was on Watkins Road.
*

9.  Gary’s cocaine deal that night

Cocaine arrest sheds light on Tweddle’s fatal end
By Emma Partridge
September 29, 2013
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/cocaine-arrest-sheds-light-on-tweddles-fatal-end-20130928-2ul59.html
A mission to keep the party going turned fatal for Sydney man Gary Tweddle on the night he vanished into Blue Mountains bushland. None of his friends imagined the awful tragedy that would unfold when the much-loved 23-year-old went to buy some cocaine.
Tweddle was attending a work conference when he ran out of the Fairmont Resort at Leura in the early hours of July 16.
Partying: Gary Tweddle, left, on a night out.
Six weeks later, his body was found resting on a cliff ledge following the largest search in Blue Mountains history.
Mystery surrounded the night the Oracle sales representative disappeared but the arrest of an alleged drug dealer partly explains what happened that night.
Christopher Thomas Pambos.Credit:Kate Geraghty
Police arrested Christopher Thomas Pambos, of Earlwood, two weeks after Tweddle vanished.
Phone records indicate Mr Pambos arranged to drive from Sydney to the Blue Mountains to meet with the British-born computer sales representative on the night he went missing.
Court documents reveal the 26-year-old had planned to sell Tweddle 2.5 grams of cocaine in five small resealable plastic bags.
He tried to meet Tweddle sometime between 10pm on July 15 and 2am on July 16 but the pair lost contact. They never met.
Blue Mountains police arrested Mr Pambos after he allegedly supplied more than $30,000 of cocaine and $800 worth of MDMA in Sydney on August 2.
He was charged with two counts of supplying a prohibited drug after he allegedly sold 128 grams of cocaine and 88 grams of the drug commonly known as ecstasy at Earlwood, in Sydney’s inner west.
Police also charged him with dealing with the suspected proceeds of a crime after he was found with $5930.
Mr Tweddle’s body had yet to be found when Mr Pambos first appeared before Burwood Local Court on August 23.
Magistrate Christopher Longley granted him bail on the condition he surrender his passport and report daily to Marrickville police station.
Fairfax Media approached Mr Pambos last week but he declined to comment. He was casually dressed in a black T-shirt and shorts when he stopped briefly outside the Despointes Street station.
Mr Pambos calls himself an online entrepreneur who runs a website called Simple Marketing Plan. ”SimpleMarketingPlan.com is the world’s leading website and newsletter for the online entrepreneur,” his Facebook page says.
Tweddle went to Silk’s Brasserie in Leura where he enjoyed a dinner with colleagues. Owner-manager Stewart Robinson said he was polite and one of the quieter members of the group. But he remembered what Tweddle looked like because he thought his behaviour was strange for someone who had not been seen to be drinking a lot.
”We noticed at that stage [when the group was leaving] that the man who went missing was a little unsteady on his feet,” Mr Robinson says. ”It was an unremarkable night. Nobody had drunk that much. They were in a celebratory mood.”
Tweddle was one of the last people to leave the restaurant.
His colleagues helped him get into the passenger seat of a Leura-Katoomba Radio Cabs taxi.
The taxi driver, who did not wish to be named, says he remembered well the 10-minute trip to the hotel. ”He was wasted, seriously wasted,” the driver said. The driver dropped the group off and they continued to drink in one of the rooms of the resort before they decided to take their night a step further. Security footage captures Tweddle running out of the Fairmont without his jacket or glasses. It is believed he wanted to meet Mr Pambos, who he had met on previous occasions in Sydney.
Shortly after leaving the resort, a distressed Tweddle rang colleagues and said he was lost.
They pleaded with him to stay where he was. A motorist told police they saw him standing in the middle of the road on the phone. A short time later, his phone battery died.
Tweddle’s friends, family, police and more than 1000 volunteers searched for him for weeks before his body was found on September 2.
Mr Pambos has not yet entered a plea and is expected to face Burwood Local Court in October.
Blue Mountains disappearance
July 15: Gary Tweddle travels to the Blue Mountains for a conference.
10.41 pm: The bill is paid for a work dinner with 45 colleagues at Silk’s Brasserie in Leura.
11pm: Tweddle gets into a Katoomba-Leura radio cab with three colleagues. He is unsteady on his feet. The group is dropped off at the Fairmont Resort. Several people continue to drink in one of the rooms. Police say Tweddle has only a few sips of a beer before he leaves.
12am: Police say he runs out of the Fairmont just after midnight. A short time later he rings a colleague and says he is lost. The conversation lasts 17 minutes. Police say it sounds as if he is running and jumping during the conversation.
12.15am: A car drives past Tweddle as he stands in the middle of Watkins Road talking on his phone.
July 16: The search begins. Police and more than 1000 volunteers search for more than 10 days.
August 2: Christopher Pambos is charged with attempting to supply cocaine to Tweddle on the night he disappeared.
August 23: Mr Pambos appears in court.
September 2: Tweddle’s body located on a cliff.
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Drug dealer linked to Gary Tweddle death sent to jail
December 10 2014, by Emma Partridge
https://www.westernadvocate.com.au/story/2754733/drug-dealer-linked-to-gary-tweddle-death-sent-to-jail/
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/drug-dealer-linked-to-gary-tweddle-death-sent-to-jail-20141203-11zi3m.html
A drug dealer who tried to sell cocaine to Sydney man Gary Tweddle on the night he fell off a cliff and died in the Blue Mountains has been sentenced to two years’ jail.
Christopher Thomas Pambos was the only one who knew where Mr Tweddle was trying to get to on the night he vanished but kept silent as thousands joined the largest search ever conducted in the Blue Mountains.
The British-born sales representative, from Cremorne, ran out of the Fairmont Resort at Leura during a work conference in the early hours of July 16, 2013.
Court documents obtained by Fairfax Media reveal Mr Tweddle was intoxicated and trying to find his way to Penrith train station to buy five bags of cocaine from Pambos.
But the 23-year-old got lost in bushland and was never seen again.
When Pambos saw news reports about Mr Tweddle’s disappearance he ignored a call from police and threw his mobile phone away.
“Pambos stated that he did this, and did not contact police, as he was scared of being exposed as a drug dealer and was worried about the consequence of this,” according to facts tendered to the District Downing Centre Court.
Police began investigating Pambos as Mr Tweddle’s heartbroken girlfriend Anika Haigh made desperate pleas for people to come forward with information.
He and Ms Haigh had been dating for three years and Ms Haigh described her partner as the most fun-loving, caring and intelligent person she had ever met.
“My best friend has been taken from me and it’s so hard. It’s horrible, I just miss him so much. My heart aches, it hurts, I didn’t even know I had these emotions.”
Hundreds of friends, family and Oracle employees plastered missing posters on every corner of Leura and Katoomba as more than 800 police, firefighters and volunteers searched rugged terrain.
During this time police tracked Pambos down after finding his number on Mr Tweddle’s iPad under a false name.
Pambos had already been arrested and appeared in court by the time Mr Tweddle’s body was found on a cliff ledge at Katoomba, six weeks after his disappearance.
On November 14 this year, Pambos was finally sentenced to a maximum two years’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to three supply related offences.
Documents tendered at his sentencing detailed how Mr Tweddle died as a result of lung puncture caused after falling 23 metres from Sublime Point at Katoomba.
“There was no suggestion of foul play in the death of Mr Tweddle and his death is believed to be as a result of misadventure,” the papers said.
Police said he was found wearing the same clothes he went missing in with a wallet containing his ID and $1300 cash.
An iPhone found 70 metres further down the cliff had no battery but showed Mr Tweddle had been using a compass and flashlight app at the time he fell.
Phone records showed Mr Tweddle and Pambos exchanged 25 text messages between 11.02pm on July 15 and 12.50am on July 16 to organise the sale of five bags of cocaine for $1550.
Mr Tweddle had drunk one to two bottles of wine at Silks Brasserie in Leura with Oracle colleagues and appeared to be in “good spirits”.
He was helped into the front seat of a taxi and after he got back to the resort he contacted Pambos.
“Hey man. I’m in leura. Keen to pay whatever. Any chance for a delivery? Will pay BIG,” said a text message sent at 11.15pm.
It was agreed the pair would meet at Penrith train station to make the exchange. This was a 45 minute drive from where Mr Tweddle was staying.
When Pambos arrived he parked in the station car park and sent Mr Tweddle three texts.
He waited 15 minutes but drove back to Sydney after failing to get a response.
Mr Tweddle sent his last text to Pambos at 11.50 and three minutes later he was captured on CCTV footage running out of the Fairmont.
An Oracle work colleague was seen running after him but he returned seconds later.
Concerned friends called his phone at 12.02am and Mr Tweddle picked up and told them he was lost.
“Tweddle appeared to still be in good sprits during this call. This was the last known contact with Tweddle. [He] was not seen or heard from after this call,” the agreed facts stated.
But his disappearance did nothing to deter Pambos from dealing drugs.
Police stopped the 27 year old in his mother’s green Ford Fiesta on Illawarra Road at Marrickville on August 2.
The dealer looked shell-shocked when police said they were investigating Mr Tweddle’s disappearance.
“Pambos immediately became nervous and started shaking and stumbling over his words.”
He confessed he had a mobile hidden in the crutch of his underpants and told them he had drugs stashed inside his Earlwood unit.
Police found more than $30,000 worth of cocaine and $800 of MDMA concealed in a Prada and Emporio Armani box inside a fridge.
During a search of his bedroom, officers also found a black drug ledger book, two sets of scales, a capsule filler, empty gelatine capsules, a number of mobile phones and 18 replica men’s watches.
The drug dealer was arrested and charged but granted bail when he first appeared before Burwood Local Court on August 23.
Fairfax Media approached Mr Pambos when he was reporting to Marrickville police station but he did not wish to make a comment.
Almost a year and half after Mr Tweddle’s death, Pambos was sentenced to nine months’ jail for trying to supply him with cocaine.
Judge Robert Toner sentenced him to two years’ jail for the two supply charges related to the cocaine and MDMA found in his unit.
He will serve the sentences concurrently and will be eligible for parole on November 13, 2015.
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Drug dealer linked to Gary Tweddle death
By Emma Partridge
December 5, 2014
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/drug-dealer-linked-to-gary-tweddle-death-sent-to-jail-20141203-11zi3m.html
A drug dealer who tried to sell cocaine to Sydney man Gary Tweddle on the night he fell off a cliff and died in the Blue Mountains has been sentenced to two years’ jail.
Christopher Thomas Pambos was the only one who knew where Mr Tweddle was trying to get to on the night he vanished but kept silent as thousands joined the largest search ever conducted in the Blue Mountains.
Drug dealer Christopher Thomas Pambos leaves Marrickville police station.Credit:Kate Geraghty
The British-born sales representative, from Cremorne, ran out of the Fairmont Resort at Leura during a work conference in the early hours of July 16, 2013.
Court documents obtained by Fairfax Media reveal Mr Tweddle was intoxicated and trying to find his way to Penrith train station to buy five bags of cocaine from Pambos.
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Gary Tweddle fell to his death in the Blue Mountains in 2013. Credit:Facebook
But the 23 year old got lost in bushland and was never seen again.
When Pambos saw news reports about Mr Tweddle’s disappearance he ignored a call from police and threw his mobile phone away.
“Pambos stated that he did this, and did not contact police, as he was scared of being exposed as a drug dealer and was worried about the consequence of this,” according to facts tendered to the District Downing Centre Court.
Police began investigating Pambos as Mr Tweddle’s heartbroken girlfriend Anika Haigh made desperate pleas for people to come forward with information.
He and Ms Haigh had been dating for three years and Ms Haigh described her partner as the most fun-loving, caring and intelligent person she had ever met.
“My best friend has been taken from me and it’s so hard. It’s horrible, I just miss him so much. My heart aches, it hurts, I didn’t even know I had these emotions.”
Hundreds of friends, family and Oracle employees plastered missing posters on every corner of Leura and Katoomba as more than 800 police, firefighters and volunteers searched rugged terrain.
During this time police tracked Pambos down after finding his number on Mr Tweddle’s iPad under a false name.
Pambos had already been arrested and appeared in court by the time Mr Tweddle’s body was found on a cliff ledge at Katoomba, six weeks after his disappearance.
On November 14 this year, Pambos was finally sentenced to a maximum two years’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to three supply related offences.
Documents tendered at his sentencing detailed how Mr Tweddle died as a result of lung puncture caused after falling 23 metres from Sublime Point at Katoomba.
“There was no suggestion of foul play in the death of Mr Tweddle and his death is believed to be as a result of misadventure,” the papers said.
Police said he was found wearing the same clothes he went missing in with a wallet containing his ID and $1300 cash.
An iPhone found 70 metres further down the cliff had no battery but showed Mr Tweddle had been using a compass and flashlight app at the time he fell.
Phone records showed Mr Tweddle and Pambos exchanged 25 text messages between 11.02pm on July 15 and 12.50am on July 16 to organise the sale of five bags of cocaine for $1550.
Mr Tweddle had drunk one to two bottles of wine at Silks Brasserie in Leura with Oracle colleagues and appeared to be in “good spirits”.
He was helped into the front seat of a taxi and after he got back to the resort he contacted Pambos.
“Hey man. I’m in leura. Keen to pay whatever. Any chance for a delivery? Will pay BIG,” said a text message sent at 11.15pm.
It was agreed the pair would meet at Penrith train station to make the exchange. This was a 45 minute drive from where Mr Tweddle was staying.
When Pambos arrived he parked in the station car park and sent Mr Tweddle three texts.
He waited 15 minutes but drove back to Sydney after failing to get a response.
Mr Tweddle sent his last text to Pambos at 11.50 and three minutes later he was captured on CCTV footage running out of Fairmont.
An Oracle work colleague was seen running after him but he returned seconds later.
Concerned friends called his phone at 12.02am and Mr Tweddle picked up and told them he was lost.
“Tweddle appeared to still be in good sprits during this call. This was the last known contact with Tweddle. [He] was not seen or heaRd from after this call,” the agreed facts stated.
But his disappearance did nothing to deter Pambos from dealing drugs.
Police stopped the 27 year old in his mother’s green Ford Fiesta on Illawarra Road at Marrickville on August 2.
The dealer looked shell-shocked when police said they were investigating Mr Tweddle’s disappearance.
“Pambos immediately became nervous and started shaking and stumbling over his words.”
He confessed he had a mobile hidden in the crutch of his underpants and told them he had drugs stashed inside his Earlwood unit.
Police found more than $30,000 worth of cocaine and $800 of MDMA concealed in a Prada and Emporio Armani box inside a fridge.
During a search of his bedroom, officers also found a black drug ledger book, two sets of scales, a capsule filler, empty gelatine capsules, a number of mobile phones and 18 replica men’s watches.
The drug dealer was arrested and charged but granted bail when he first appeared before Burwood Local Court on August 23.
Fairfax Media approached Mr Pambos when he was reporting to Marrickville police station but he did not wish to make a comment.
Almost a year and half after Mr Tweddle’s death, Pambos was sentenced to nine months’ jail for trying to supply him with cocaine.
Judge Robert Toner sentenced him to two years’ jail for the two supply charges related to the cocaine and MDMA found in his unit.
He will serve the sentences concurrently and will be eligible for parole on November 13, 2015.

 

 

10.  Sydney: world’s cocaine capital 

Australia the highest per capita cocaine user in the world
A major investigation has blown the lid on Australia’s cocaine war, with quantities of the drug hitting our shores at unprecedented levels.
Natalie Brown
June 20, 2021
https://www.news.com.au/national/australia-the-highest-per-capita-cocaine-user-in-the-world/news-story/c91869d4e2b2adeef266917d82f705e0
Australia’s Cocaine Crisis:  According to our wastewater, 5,675kg of cocaine was consumed in 2020, with much of the trafficked narcotics is coming in through our sea ports.
A major investigation has blown the lid on Australia’s cocaine war, revealing that quantities of the drug are hitting our shores at unprecedented levels and the shocking truth at the heart of our nation’s crisis.
A Sky News Australia special, , has examined the extraordinary lengths that the kingpins of our nation’s cocaine trade go to to smuggle huge quantities of the substance onto our shores — and how the so-called “party drug” has come to impact every level of society.
“It is an absolute tsunami of drugs entering this country and you can’t blame the police — they’re a little force fighting it at the front end, but we are just being absolutely swamped by drugs, by meth, but mostly by cocaine,” News Corp Australia senior correspondent, Charles Miranda, who has been looking into Australia’s illicit drug market for decades, told host Peter Stefanovic.
While once considered the drug of the wealthy city dweller, statistics reveal cocaine usage has now spread much further — Australia is now the highest per capita user of the drug in the world, with trade estimated to be as high as $2 billion and five and a half tonnes consumed here each year — figures deemed “staggering” by Miranda.
“What we know from our wastewater data is that cocaine is a serious drug for the country. Australians are a country of stimulant users — cocaine is a stimulant,” the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission’s Dr Katie Willis said.
“All of the data that we have is pointing in the direction of expansion in the cocaine market.”
RELATED: Why cops blew up secret crime app
Australia is now the highest per capita user of cocaine in the world, with five and a half tonnes consumed each year.
Australia is now the highest per capita user of cocaine in the world, with five and a half tonnes consumed each year.
The fact that most people spent the last 12 months locked indoors has done little “to diminish the appetite for cocaine in this country”, explained Miranda.
“It’s just phenomenal. And in some respects, the war is escalated behind the scenes, behind the sort of distraction that is Covid-19,” he said.
“The value of it has gone up, under the perception that it’s harder to get, but it’s not harder to get. We’re getting more ship exports, genuine ship exports, than ever before because we’re not flying as much airfreight — so we’re shipping it all, and in the guise of ship freights, of legitimate ship freights, are these drugs.”
The highest demand for cocaine is still in Sydney — which for years has demonstrated a remarkable appetite for the drug that only continues to grow, driven by a high level of social acceptance for cocaine and the fact that products are widely available, because the city is a major port of entry for goods coming into the country.
Data from the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission’s wastewater analysis last year showed that the NSW capital (Sydney) consumed 15 doses of cocaine per 1000 people on average day, compared to Melbourne’s six doses, Brisbane’s five and Canberra’s 10.
Australia the highest per capita cocaine user in the world
A major investigation has blown the lid on Australia’s cocaine war, with quantities of the drug hitting our shores at unprecedented levels.
Natalie Brown
June 20, 2021
https://www.news.com.au/national/australia-the-highest-per-capita-cocaine-user-in-the-world/news-story/c91869d4e2b2adeef266917d82f705e0
At The Banyans “luxury rehabilitation clinic” in southeast Queensland, about two in five people seeking treatment for cocaine addiction come from Sydney — with CEO Ruth Limkin saying some there have spent as much as $10,000 or $20,000 a week on the habit.
RELATED: ‘Year’s worth’ of cocaine seized
Sydney remains the “cocaine capital” of Australia. Picture: AAP Image/April Fonti
Sydney remains the “cocaine capital” of Australia. Picture: AAP Image/April Fonti
Cocaine use has filtered down through “every level of society, down to tradies”.
Cocaine use has filtered down through “every level of society, down to tradies”.
“You might remember years ago, it was sort of the mainstay for the media industry even, or the judicial industry, all the lawyers, rich people, high society, business types — cocaine was for the business types,” Miranda said.
“Now it’s every level of society, down to the tradies. Anyone who’s got a few bucks, it’s very easy to get hold of.”
While it may be easy to get a hold of, though, it’ll take more than “a few bucks” to do so — Australians pay a premium price for cocaine, forking out a minimum of $300 for a gram, which equates to about 10 lines or doses.
“What is known that of course it is worth a lot more, and sold for a much higher price, in Australia than it is in Mexico, here, or Colombia, or the United States,” Andalusia Knoll Soloff, a reporter based in Mexico City, explained.
“Here in Mexico, one gram of cocaine on average costs between $3 and $14 — it depends on what part of the city or the country you’re in. Then once it gets to the United States, it’s worth between $60 and $80, and then once it gets to Australia it’s worth around $300.”
RELATED: Why no Americans were arrested in Operation Ironside
An importation of 160kg of cocaine, worth an estimated $40 million, seized in Victoria as part of Operation Ironside.
An importation of 160kg of cocaine, worth an estimated $40 million, seized in Victoria as part of Operation Ironside.
A significant segment of the price is driven by the major profit margins enjoyed by local organised crime groups who have facilitated the importation of the drug from international suppliers — often cartels in South America.
According to NSW Police Organised Crime Squad’s Detective Superintendent Martin Fileman, the huge profit margins directly correlate to the size of the risks facilitators are willing to take to bring the drug into Australia.
“When you look at the way where Australia is, and you look at the price you can pay for a kilo of cocaine in America, or even Australia to South America — South America [it’s] $3000 a kilo, here, $230,000 a kilo,” he said.
“So the risks that these facilitators or these organised crime syndicates in Australia — they are willing to take [them].”
On June 8, the “sting of the century”, Operation Ironside, nabbed dozens of suspects as part of a global operation to bring down terrorist groups, mafia organisations and outlaw motorcycle gangs.
“We’ve taken their money, we’ve taken their livelihoods, and we’ve arrested, you know, 250 people in Australia and 800 people across the globe,” Australian Federal Police Commander Kirsty Schofield said.
But the sting only hit about five or 10 per cent of the cocaine flushing into Australia — showing we’re a country very much in crisis mode.
“The unfortunate part about it is we have a market over here for cocaine, so as long as we’ve got a market, they’re going to keep importing it,” Supt Fileman said.

https://www.news.com.au/national/australia-the-highest-per-capita-cocaine-user-in-the-world/news-story/c91869d4e2b2adeef266917d82f705e0

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Cocaine is the drug of choice for Australia’s C-Level executives
https://thebanyans.com.au/cocaine-executives/
With a large disposable income, high stakes, long working hours and an intense social scene, it seems that cocaine is often the substance of choice for Australia’s wealthiest and most influential business executives.
The corporate culture of drug misuse is growing among C-level professionals – especially in the banking and finance sector, the construction field, the legal profession and Australia’s mining industry[i].
According to a report by The Daily Telegraph, one cocaine supplier admitted to spending most of his time in Sydney’s wealthiest eastern suburbs[ii], where the average income is $200,015 per year[iii]. Similarly, Sydney-based police are also noting a steady rise in drug-related incidents in the higher earning suburbs[iv].
Dr. Christian Rowan is an Addiction Specialist and the Medical Director at The Banyans Health and Wellness Residence. He attributes the particularly high prevalence of cocaine use[v] to its stimulating effects. “People often take cocaine over other drugs because it is perceived to be low risk, and effective for making you feel awake and energized.” Whether professionals are misusing the drug to increase their productivity or “let their hair down”, it is often the increased energy or release of tension that initially captures their attention.
Dr. Rowan also believes that cocaine’s reputation as a status symbol is also contributing to it being a drug of choice. “Because the substance [cocaine] is expensive to obtain, it carries a sense of glamour and elite exclusivity.” He relates it to being similar to purchasing an expensive bottle of wine at a restaurant.
However, Dr. Rowan highlights the inaccurate perception of cocaine being “less addictive” or “not as bad” as other illicit drugs. “Usually executives and business people are initially using cocaine recreationally in a social setting. Because of this, people may be unaware of their developing drug dependency.” With cocaine being widespread and prevalent within these elite circles, “social use” could still mean that people are using the substance multiple times a week[vi].
Reports published by The University of Sydney in 2013 conveyed similar observations.
Research suggested cocaine-users reporting significantly higher average incomes considered themselves “social users, rather than addicts”. These people were often misusing the drug in conjunction with alcohol.
In an article by The Sydney Morning Herald, one cocaine user confessed that cocaine was preferred over other drugs because of the very few physical symptoms or consequences, unlike methamphetamines or marijuana[viii]. However, Dr. Rowan explains that this notion is a misconception, and cocaine is just as harmful as any other drug. A dependency can develop after a very short period of use, and may go unrecognized for a long time[ix].
Common signs of cocaine use include disrupted sleeping patterns, erratic behavior and dramatic mood swings. Dr. Rowan suggests that behaviors associated with greater desperation to attain cocaine, or feeling unable to function without it, can lead to an increase in time or money spent in obtaining the drug. “In turn, this may lead to a deteriorating physical or psychological condition, a key indicator of a developing dependency or addiction.”
“Many of the individuals misusing cocaine in the C-Suite level of businesses are very intelligent, articulate people who are driven to achieve outcomes. These people may not even be aware of their dependency issues, as they will feel like they are keeping their head above the water, so to speak.” Dr. Rowan says that this can make it very difficult to approach a loved one or colleague who may be misusing cocaine.
Peter Hayton, the Clinical Director and Senior Psychologist at The Banyans Health and Wellness Residence has over twenty years of experience in the field, and explains that planning the conversation is one of the keys to success. “It is important that you consider some of the personality traits of your loved one or colleague, and how they might respond to your concerns.” He reminds people to try and approach the topic with as much gentleness and understanding as possible.
If you are concerned about a colleague, Peter notes that the workplace may not be the most effective environment to raise the issue.
“There is not a one-size-fits-all technique with these things. But often, it is necessary to involve their family and wider support network.”
The Banyans Health and Wellness Residence has an extensive team of medical and wellness professionals who are experienced in drug addiction recovery and rehabilitation. Dr. Rowan and Peter Hayton work alongside other professionals to help guests overcome their addictions and return to a healthy, balanced state of living. Dr. Rowan explains that this would entail complete abstinence, along with physical wellness, stabilised mood and healthy relationships.
These are the main goals of the tailored programs offered at The Banyans Health and Wellness Residence. Together with psychiatrists, counselors and psychologists, guests are able to work through a variety of underlying challenges and misconceptions that are limiting their ability to access the fullness of life. Guests partner with exercise physiologists, personal trainers and nutritionists to improve their physical wellness, including a diet and program. Onsite chefs, registered nurses, and wellness coaches also help you along your journey to make sure you achieve effective, long lasting results.
The medically supported program at The Banyans is a comprehensive, integrated approach to health and wellness that equips people with the skills they need to overcome their drug addiction and co-occurring conditions. If you think that a program like ours would benefit yourself or someone you care about, please do not hesitate to engage in a private, confidential discussion with The Banyans Health and Wellness Residence on +61 1300 BANYAN 1300 897 845) or complete an online form below.
[i] Lipari, R. and Bush, D. (2015). Substance Use and Substance Use Disorder by Industry. [online] Samhsa.gov. Available at: https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/report_1959/ShortReport-1959.html [Accessed 19 Feb. 2018].
[ii] Hills, B. (2014). Suburban and coke: Drug’s use rising. [online] Dailytelegraph.com.au. Available at: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/cocaine-is-becoming-one-of-sydneys-most-popular-drugs-with-drug-dealers-reaping-up-to-35000-a-week-from-users/news-story/c2962fb86bf935a30606fa61e5b1c7c1 [Accessed 19 Feb. 2018].
[iii] Ong, T. (2016). Sydney’s eastern suburbs house the nation’s top income earners. [online] ABC News. Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-18/tax-office-report-shows-sydney-east-dominates-taxable-income/7258860 [Accessed 19 Feb. 2018].
[iv] Hills, B. (2014).
[v] Confirm Biosciences (2016). The Impact of Drug Abuse in the Construction Industry. [online] Confirm BioSciences. Available at: https://www.confirmbiosciences.com/knowledge/blog/industry-news-construction-industry-affected-drug-abuse/ [Accessed 8 Feb. 2018].
[vi] Hills, B. (2014).
[vii] Print, K. (2014). Social cocaine use more harmful than you think. [online] Sydney.edu.au. Available at: http://sydney.edu.au/news/84.html?newsstoryid=13410 [Accessed 23 Feb. 2018].
[viii] Meares, J. (2011). Score, Chop, Snort: Sydney’s cocaine blizzard. [online] The Sydney Morning Herald. Available at: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/score-chop-snort-sydneys-cocaine-blizzard-20111025-1mhpt.html [Accessed 23 Feb. 2018].
[ix] Mediscreen. (2011). Snapshot of the Australian Cocaine User. [online] Available at: https://www.mediscreen.net.au/snapshot-of-the-australian-cocaine-user/ [Accessed 8 Feb. 2018].
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The Alarming Cocaine User Demographics in Sydney
By: SWL-Admin   •   June 15, 2017
https://drugsafe.com.au/cocaine-user-demographics-sydney/
Many of us make a fatal assumption when it comes to drug users.
Most people still assume that drug addiction is a problem mainly found with lowly-educated, marginalised people in Australia’s lower socio-economic suburbs.
However, a recent article written by Rachel Olding for the Sydney Morning Herald shows the opposite is true.
A growing cocaine drug trade is hiding in the underbelly of some of Sydney’s most affluent suburbs.
In her article, Olding reports of two 30 year old men who had been operating a syndicate that delivered drugs to thousands of people across the eastern suburbs and city. Equally astonishing is how invicible these men appaerantly felt running their operations.
Round-the-clock drug deliveries
Based in Homebush Andrew Hadi and Beau Greentree ran their cocaine operations from home. Buyers would text the men for “rock show tickets” or “beers” – code for a 0.5 gram bag of cocaine for $200.
The pair employed six drivers, each working 12-hour shifts to make deliveries to customers around the city. During a shift a driver would deliver up to 50 bags of cocaine each to customers. The drivers earned anywhere from $150 to $200 for every six bags delivered.
The drivers also did little to keep their illicit drug running around the city discreet. Bondi model and entrepreneur George Gerges was known to make deliveries using his black Lexus, while another man apparently used his father’s cab to make a delivery in Woollahra.
Under surveillance
Following a driver’s arrest back in 2015, authorities began taking a closer look at Hadi and Greentree’s operations. They employed undercover officers to stage deals, started tapping phone calls and bugging homes, hoping to gather enough evidence against the syndicate.
While listening over a tapped phone conversation, Gerges was even found insisting that they were safe; confidently declaring that he personally ensured that any risk of getting caught was minimised. Right then, no more than 15 minutes after, police managed to conduct a synchronised raid where Gerges, who was carrying over a hundred bags of cocaine, eventually plead guilty.
plastic bag of cocaine
Rising cocaine use in Sydney’s most affluent neighbourhoods
Authorities estimate that between May and September 2015 alone, the drivers involved in the arrest were supplying cocaine to nearly two thousand customers.
In her article Olding cites that cocaine use in New South Wales has been steadily rising at 22 per cent annually in the last five years.
Even more alarming are the statistics in the eastern suburbs, with Woollahra’s use and possession rate being 12 times higher than the state average. This puts the suburb second only to rates in the CBD.
You can read the original article here.
Are Your Employees Really Safe?
When you think of drug users, the image of a professional, gainfully employed adult isn’t what usually comes to mind.
But given the statistics of where most of the cocaine in the state is used, we have to rethink that image. It is obvious that cocaine use is prevalent and increasing among affluent white-collar professionals.
This was further illustrated in the highly publicised arrest of Lisa Munro, the solicitor from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, who pleaded guilty to drug possession earlier this year.
Given the prevalence of drug use today, you really cannot be certain just how many of your own employees or colleagues could be suffering from addiction and drug dependency.
It’s a very real problem that requires tangible intervention. If you’re concerned about this problem and want to do something about it, give us a call today.
Related Posts:
Sydney is the cocaine capital of Australia
Aussies Pay More For Cocaine
Drugs: Like Ordering A Pizza!
May Madness 5
TAGS: drugs in the workplace, news about drugs
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Sydney is the cocaine capital of Australia
By: SWL-Admin   •   July 5, 2019
https://drugsafe.com.au/sydney-cocaine-capital-australia/
New South Wales is making the headlines again relating to illicit cocaine use.
This after recent operations targeting the supply of cocaine in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. In this case, Police apprehended a total of 55 people for either buying or selling cocaine. What’s shocking is the brazen way buyers and sellers act on the streets of Sydney’s eastern suburbs. It is definitely unsettling.
In an article by Lucy Cormack in The Sydney Morning Herald, she details efforts and worries of the authorities that are working to contain cocaine use in the country.
In the past two years, the Bureau of Crime and Statistics saw a 7.7 increase in the number of criminal cases involving the possession and use of cocaine.
What’s clear is that Sydneysiders have a big appetite for the drug. According to the state’s chief crime statistician Don Weatherburn, “There is no doubt Sydney is the cocaine capital of Australia.”
A growing acceptance of cocaine use
The acceptance of the drug likely contributes to the growing base of cocaine users.
For some, it’s a weekly habit, and for others, an occasional treat. Furthermore, its reputation as an elite drug is also not helping. Drug user demographics show cocaine has become the drug of choice of the affluent.
NSW Police Minister David Elliott says that the elite are not protected from the reality of a cold jail cell. He added: “The use of any illicit drug is unacceptable, regardless of the demographic or reason and I’ll be backing our police 100 percent in their battle to rid this poison from our community.”
Record production of cocaine
cocaine packets
According to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, the number of cocaine users in the nation continues to grow.
Mr. Weatherburn worries that if occasional users become daily or weekly users, it may lead to a rise in other crime.
Cocaine seizures this year gives you an idea of the supply that makes its way into the country. For instance, law enforcement yielded 68kg of cocaine in April and just this week, another 30kg was discovered in a Southern Tablelands lab.
According to Shane Neilson, ACIC’s head of determination high risk and emerging drugs, “the world is inundated with cocaine at the moment.”
There is record production of cocaine in Colombia, where a kilo of the coca plant costs $200, and on the streets of Sydney, costs $300 a gram. However, despite the high price tag, the user base of the illicit drug is expanding.
The Broadened User Base of Cocaine
The perception of cocaine has changed significantly over the past two to five years. According to the latest data, the user base is no longer limited to certain sections of society. In fact, many now view cocaine as a party drug and do not see an issue with using it.
As per Police Minister Elliott, cocaine is a curse to society. And law enforcement needs continued support to fight the war.
In the absence of stigma (unlike heroin), tackling growing cocaine use takes more than just seizing the drug. We need to be clear that cocaine abuse really is a curse on society.
You can read the original article here.
Enforce Random Drug Testing For Cocaine At Work
What the recent reports show is that no demographic, industry or profession is safe from illicit drug use. It is an unfortunate truth that many drug users in our country not only are affluent, but belong to the workforce.
Without knowing who among your employees use cocaine, how can you take action against growing drug dependency and maintain workplace safety?
This is where drug testing for cocaine comes in. Random drug testing has shown to be very effective in curbing employee drug use.
By making random drug testing part of your comprehensive drug safe workplace programme (along with cocaine awareness programme), you can deter your employees from using and the drug.
Drug-Safe Australia will help you develop the most effective drug policy and tailor it to meet your company’s needs.
Find out who among your employees is abusing cocaine — get in touch with us today.
Related Posts:
The Alarming Cocaine User Demographics in Sydney
Aussies Pay More For Cocaine
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11. Gary’s cocaine habit driven by Oracle bullying?

Billionaire tech pioneer Larry Ellison stepped down as Oracle chief executive on Thursday, ending one of the most profitable runs for a leader in business history.
Ellison has been Oracle’s only chief executive since he founded the company in 1977.
SOURCE:  Oracle founder Larry Ellison resigns after 35 years as CEO, 2014-09-19, by Dominic Rushe in New York
The Guardian/Tech News, ^https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/sep/18/larry-ellison-oracle-billionaire-resigns-ceo#:~:text=Billionaire%20tech%20pioneer%20Larry%20Ellison,founded%20the%20company%20in%201977.
This tragic missing person event was no-one’s fault but that of Gary Tweedle (the victim), contributed to by the bully instigator (Oracle Corporation’s culture drive by CEO Larry Ellison) and the criminal perpetrator (exploitative cocaine drug dealer Christopher Thomas Pambos).

Gary’s memorial plaque above rockclimbing cliff route called ‘Sweet Dreams’ on Sublime Point headland atop where he fell to his death.

12. Further Reading

[1]  ‘Have you seen Gary Tweddle?’, NSW Police Force Facebook, 2013-07-28, ^https://www.facebook.com/nswpoliceforce/photos/a.395208846184/10151597366491185/?type=3

[2]  ‘Friends talked Gary Tweddle for 17 minutes before his phone went dead and he went missing a week ago in the Blue Mountains’, 20130723, by Ben McClellan, The Daily Telegraph,  ^https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/friends-talked-gary-tweddle-for-17-minutes-before-his-phone-went-dead-and-he-went-missing-a-week-ago-in-the-blue-mountains/news-story/fa5070c227c2b112719ffb4685e4ffe1

[3]  ‘Gary Tweddle’s body found in Blue Mountains, police believe’, by Alex Ivett, 3-Sep-2013, News, ^https://www.australiantimes.co.uk/news/gary-tweddles-body-found-in-blue-mountains-police-believe/

[4]  ‘Body found in Australia during search for missing Briton Gary Tweddle’, 2013-09-13, ^https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/02/body-australia-missing-gary-tweddle

[5]  ‘Body found in Australia bushland is ‘missing British man Gary Tweddle‘, 20130903, by David Mercer, ^https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/body-found-in-australia-bushland-is-missing-british-man-gary-tweddle-8795875.html

[6]  ‘Australia the highest per capita cocaine user in the world‘, 2021-06-20, by journalist Natalie Brown, News Ltd, ^https://www.news.com.au/national/australia-the-highest-per-capita-cocaine-user-in-the-world/news-story/c91869d4e2b2adeef266917d82f705e0

[7]  ‘Friends talked Gary Tweddle for 17 minutes before his phone went dead and he went missing a week ago in the Blue Mountains‘,  July 23, 2013, by Ben McClellan, DailyTelegraph

[8]   ‘Sydney is the cocaine capital of Australia‘, 2019-07-05, by SWL-Admin, ^https://drugsafe.com.au/sydney-cocaine-capital-australia/

[9]   ‘Oracle founder Larry Ellison resigns after 35 years as CEO‘, 2014-09-19, by Dominic Rushe in New York. The Guardian/Tech News, ^https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/sep/18/larry-ellison-oracle-billionaire-resigns-ceo