adminBrisbane – Super Rugby was reeling yesterday after a man widely identified as Reds star Karmichael Hunt was charged with supplying cocaine. The charges follow an operation by Queensland’s Crime and Corruption Commission, which resulted in the arrest of four people on Thursday night.
One of them was New Zealand-born Hunt, who used to play rugby league for the Brisbane Broncos, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and other media reported.
He was charged with four counts of supplying the drug, it said.
“During an investigation focused on a cocaine trafficking syndicate operating in southeast Queensland, these four individuals were identified contacting the syndicate and arranging for the supply of cocaine,” the commission alleged.
Investigators claim that the three men and one woman arranged for the supply of cocaine for personal use or to supply to friends and colleagues between June and December 2014.
Hunt, 28, was on Thursday named at fullback for the Reds in their match against the Western Force in Brisbane last night.
The team postponed their pre-match captain’s press conference yesterday morning as reports of their vice-captain’s arrest spread.
“The Australian Rugby Union and Queensland Rugby Union are aware of reports regarding Karmichael Hunt,” the two governing bodies said in a joint statement.
“The ARU’s integrity team and the Queensland Rugby Union are making inquiries into the reports. We’ll be in a position to comment in more detail once those inquiries have progressed.”
A former rugby league international and Broncos star, Hunt joined the Reds this season following a stint in the Australian Rules football league with the Gold Coast Suns.
The four are due to appear in court on March 5. — Sport 24
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