Last Updated on: 3rd April 2022, 11:20 am
Who is Bennet Schwartz of Sydney, Australia? Biography, Wiki
A former mining executive-turned-cocaine smuggler Bennet Schwartz has been arrested after police recognized his dog, Louis, in a photograph he sent to accomplices before he was found dead in his cell.
Detectives secretly raided Bennett Schwartz’s Double Bay unit in Sydney’s eastern suburbs in August, looking for evidence linking him to a major syndicate allegedly involving suspected drug lord Mostafa Baluch.
Police Investigation Report
The person they were looking for had months earlier sent a photo of a French bulldog to someone using the same phone used for the cocaine operation, but investigators had limited evidence that it was Schwartz.
When they opened the door to find the same dog sitting in the apartment, they confirmed that the 34-year-old former Rio Tinto worker was involved.
“The dog’s name was Louie,” a police source told The Daily Telegraph. Schwartz had two of the same breed.
The tiles in the unit also matched those on which Louis sat in the photo Schwartz sent on May 25 under the pseudonym “Anybreak.”
Authorities could see messages between drug dealers because they were sent using AN0M.
The messaging app was popular with criminals because it was believed to have impenetrable encryption that prevented conversations from being monitored.
In fact, the app was developed by the Australian Federal Police and FBI to catch international criminal organizations and record all their conversations.
Police took a picture of Louis the day the home was searched in August and used it as evidence against Schwartz, along with the picture he sent in May.
Bennet Schwartz Arrested And Charged
A former mining executive-turned-cocaine smuggler has been arrested after police recognized his dog, Louis, in a photograph he sent to accomplices before he was found dead in his cell.
Investigators also seized a disposable phone used to check the delivery status of the cocaine shipment, along with 62 other shipments of heroin and methamphetamine.
With the photo and the phone, police had enough evidence to show that Schwartz was trying to hatch a plan to smuggle 27kg of cocaine into Australia with the Northern Beaches restaurateur and accused drug lord Mostafa Baluch.
Apparently, the drugs were hidden in modeling clay.
Baluch has also been charged with conspiracy but has not yet pleaded guilty to any of the charges.
He is in Australia’s most secure prison, Goulburn’s Supermax, after allegedly having an ankle monitor cut off while on bail and on the run.
Victim
“He was raised properly by his widowed mother. He made sacrifices to get a good education, to study, to have a job, and to support his family.”
Schwartz was the victim of extortion attempts behind bars and was released in March 2020.
In October of the following year, he was arrested again and charged with his involvement in shipping cocaine.
He was awaiting trial on other drug trafficking charges when he was found dead at the Silverwater Metropolitan Reception and Detention Center in February.
Inquiries into the circumstances of his death are ongoing and law enforcement officials have confirmed there will be an inquest by a coroner.
Some Quick Facts About Bennett Schwartz
- Bennett Schwartz sent a photo of Louis to a drug accomplice in May last year
- Police secretly searched the 34-year-old’s unit in August and found the same dog
- The Sydney grammar graduate has been linked to suspected drug lord Mostafa Baluch
- Schwartz was found dead in his cell in February.
