Bunbury Grandfather Convicted of Heroin Smuggling

A 70-year-old businessman and grandfather from Bunbury, Barry James Calverley, has been found guilty of smuggling heroin into Australia. The verdict was delivered following a trial in Sydney.

During the trial, Calverley stated that he was unaware the camp bed contained illegal drugs.

Case Overview

Calverley was accused of transporting a camp bed filled with approximately five kilograms of heroin on a flight from Laos to Sydney in January 2024. For this task, he had reportedly been promised over $18 million.

Defendant's Statement

Calverley testified that he believed an email promising millions for signing documents in Laos was related to a potential compensation for a previous incident where he had been scammed out of $250,000.

Calverley, a mining consultant who frequently traveled for work, indicated that the earlier scam had led to depression and marital issues, which he offered as context for his belief in the compensatory email.