Drug importer who used forged documents to flee rehab jailed
Drug importer-turned fugitive Hussein Chamas is jailed for trafficking and absconding from a NSW rehabilitation facility before trying to flee Australia.
Hussein Chamas Hussein, a former drug importer, has been sentenced to over ten years in jail for drug trafficking and fleeing rehab while on bail in 2021. Arrested in 2023, he was initially bailed to a rehabilitation facility near Newcastle but absconded in 2025, planning to flee on a yacht from Darwin. The court heard that Chamas used fraudulent documents to deceive rehab staff into allowing his escape and later attempted to flee on a yacht off the Northern Territory coast.
In December 2025, he pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including conspiracy to import drugs, trafficking cocaine, and perverting the course of justice. Judge Pauline David sentenced him to ten and a half years with a six and a half year non-parole period. Chamas was eligible for release in December 2030 due to time served.
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