By Chinasaokwu Helen okoro
Amember of the Australian Olympic hockey team was arrested after allegedly trying to buy cocaine in Paris.
Thomas Craig, who won a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games, was arrested on Tuesday night in the city’s ninth arrondissement, an area renowned for its theaters and shopping. The 28-year-old is currently in French custody.
According to the Paris Public Prosecutor’s office, officers witnessed the “cocaine transaction” and subsequently arrested both the seller and the buyer. The seller was reportedly found with a significant quantity of narcotics, including 75 ecstasy pills, 3 grams of 2-MMC, and seven vials of cocaine.
The Australian Olympic Committee confirmed the arrest in a statement issued on Wednesday: “An Australian hockey team member is in custody after being arrested in Paris on August 6. No charges have been laid. The AOC is continuing to make enquiries and arrange support for the team member.”
The investigation has now been given over to the Narcotics Brigade. In France, the penalty for being caught with cocaine under the amount of ten grams can be an on-the-spot fine of $163.79.
Newsweek has reached out to the French police for comment.
Craig’s arrest comes shortly after the Australian men’s hockey team, nicknamed the Kookaburras, was eliminated in the quarter-finals of the Paris Games after losing 2-0 to the Netherlands.
Hockey Australia’s chief executive David Pryles made a post on X, formerly Twitter, where he praised the team members after they were knocked out of the running for a medal. He wrote, “Incredible group of athletes and staff we have at Hockey Australia, Hockeyroos and Kookaburras.”
With the right people, culture and values, you can accomplish great things,” he wrote, and finished the post writing, “There’s only upside from here.”
Craig has made more than 100 appearances for the Kookaburras and previously won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2018.
The Olympics in Paris have been hit by several controversies. Tennis star Serena Williams caused a stir online after she said a restaurant in the city refused her entry.
The restaurant apologized, saying it was fully booked at the time.
And on Monday, Paraguayan swimmer Luana Alonso denied she was asked to leave the Olympic Village after creating an “inappropriate atmosphere.”
No further information was given on what the alleged behavior was, with Alonso seemingly then returning to the U.S., where she is studying at university
