Australian politician fined after admitting to supplying cocaine

David Speirs, the former leader of South Australia’s Liberal Party, has been convicted of supplying cocaine, months after denying involvement and claiming a viral video of him snorting a white substance was fabricated.

The Adelaide Magistrates Court on Thursday imposed a fine of USD 5,720 and sentenced Speirs to 37.5 hours of community service. The sentence follows a guilty plea last month, where Speirs admitted to supplying cocaine to two individuals in August.

Speirs was initially arrested in September after News Corp released footage showing him using what appeared to be cocaine. At the time, he insisted the video was a "deepfake" and maintained he had never used the drug. He later retracted those statements and confessed, triggering his resignation from parliament.

During sentencing, his legal team described his drug use as “a form of escapism” from the demands of his political role, though they emphasized the offences were committed outside his official capacity.

Magistrate Brian Nitschke, however, rejected calls for leniency, including a request not to record a conviction to allow international travel. "The need for public denunciation for this type of offending and the need for general deterrence is too great to refrain from recording a conviction," he said, noting that personal stress “is certainly no excuse.”