What's new
The Front Row Forums

Register a free account today to become a member of the world's largest Rugby League discussion forum! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Jake Friend gets bond in drug case

Slackboy72

Coach
Messages
12,114
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...er-tattoo-pain-and-anxiety-20100606-xn9g.html

Friend says he needed valium pills to counter tattoo pain and anxiety

BRAD WALTER

June 7, 2010
jakefriend-420x0.jpg
That's the tatt … Jake Friend has been getting his right arm inked in stages but says the pain still requires medication. Photo: Getty Images

A NEW tattoo is understood to be behind Jake Friend's latest brush with the law, with the Sydney Roosters hooker arrested for possessing two valium tablets without prescription after being searched by police in Coogee on Saturday night.
The Herald was told Friend had the tablets to relieve pain from tattoo work done last week, as well as help with anxiety, and will plead not guilty to the charge.
The 20-year-old hooker was sacked by the Roosters in December after three alcohol-related police charges in the previous eight months but was reinstated last month when he convinced the club he was dealing with his problems.
He has had extensive ink work in recent weeks.
Because of the size of the tattoo, a sleeve running down his right arm, Friend has been adding to it each week and more remains to be done.
He has been getting the work done in stages due to the pain and is understood to have been given the pills for that reason but had not taken them.
He and a 24-year-old friend, believed to be Roosters teammate Todd Carney, were searched by police from the Eastern Suburbs Area Command on the promenade at Coogee Beach. They had been at McDonald's when stopped by the police officers at 11.50pm on Saturday night after the Roosters' 42-18 loss to Cronulla. It was unclear why the pair were targetted.
A police spokesman said Friend was found to have a quantity of valium without a prescription.
He was arrested and charged with two counts of possessing a prescription drug without permission.
Friend was given bail and is due at Waverley Local Court on June 30.
After speaking to Friend and the club's medical staff, Roosters officials said they would stand by the hooker and expected him to be cleared of any wrongdoing. ''Whilst understanding the sensitivity in regards to the police investigation, the club has consulted with its own medical staff and is of the firm belief that there is an innocent explanation,'' a statement said.
''The club believes that as the charges are addressed and dealt with appropriately this will become clear to all parties.''
Friend has had a troubled few years at the Roosters. His contract was torn up in December after he was charged with refusing to pay a taxi fare.
Saturday night's match was Friend's fourth since the Roosters agreed to re-sign him last month on a contract containing strict behavioural guidelines.
For the previous four months he had been working in a cafe while going through counselling and rehabilitation in a bid to save his career after being convicted of drink driving and charged with an alleged nightclub assault in 2009.
Friend was sacked in December after a taxi driver took him to Randwick police station when he fell asleep. He became abusive when woken.

Tattoos and anxiety eh?
I'd be anxious too if a copper found valium in my pockets with someone else's name on it.
 

CliffyIsGod

First Grade
Messages
6,454
I work for the company that makes it. It is a sedative.

I can't believe that some of you are thinking it is a non-issue. Some prescription drugs can be just as bad as illegal drugs if not used for the purpose it was prescribed.

There is a huge amount of people that have died/addicted to drugs like valium because they have abused them.
 

Pete Cash

Post Whore
Messages
62,165
By some strange coincidence I was reading about Valium only a few days ago. Apparently it is more abused in the US than opiate based medication as far as prescription drugs go.
 

Jobdog

Live Update Team
Messages
25,696

Todd Carney link to Jake Friend drug bust

By Dean Richie

POLICE are investigating the misuse of prescription drugs by some Sydney Roosters players, after charging first-grade hooker Jake Friend with illegally possessing Valium and searching star fullback Todd Carney.

Police patrolling Coogee Beach promenade allegedly saw Friend, 20, hand a pill to Carney, 23, as they stood near a car at 11.40pm Saturday.

Officers then searched the pair, allegedly finding a packet of seven Valium tablets on Friend. No pills were found on Carney and he was released without charges.

Police will allege the Valium tablets had been prescribed to a woman and that Friend had them illegally. He has been charged with two counts of possessing a prescribed substance over the Valium possession.

It is believed the players defended themselves to police and said the tablet consumed by Carney was simply Tramadol, a prescription drug provided by a doctor to treat pain.

Friend allegedly added that a doctor had provided him with three of the tablets. Tramadol is an analgesic which can produce a sense of euphoria in some users.

Police said their investigation into the incident would continue. Friend was granted bail to appear before Waverley Local Court on June 30.

Last month the Sydney Roosters reinstated Friend after sacking him for unrelated off-field misbehaviour.

Depending on the outcome of the charges, the Roosters may be under pressure to sack Friend, who has been playing well in the hooker role.

The Roosters did not name Carney in a media release distributed yesterday.

"The Sydney Roosters have today been made aware that Jake Friend has been charged with two offences relating to prescription drugs," the press release said.

"While understanding the sensitivity in regards to the police investigation, the club has consulted with its own medical staff and is of the firm belief that there is an innocent explanation. The club believes that as the charges are addressed and dealt with appropriately, this will become clear to all parties.

"The club will welcome this opportunity when it arises and will make no further comment in the meantime."

NRL chief executive David Gallop said: "We've spoken to the club and are waiting for a further report."

Carney joined the Roosters this year after a number of unrelated indiscretions during his time with Canberra. In June 2007, Carney pleaded guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court to failing to stop when directed by police, negligent driving and also driving while disqualified.
LINK
 

schnitzel

Juniors
Messages
432
Maybe Carney had also some ink done and they've been sharing the goods? Funnily enuf they both have sleeve tatts ;-)
 

Noa

First Grade
Messages
9,029
From what I know going back a few years plenty of players take some form of medication to help them get to sleep after a game. If not they can be up till 3 or 4 due to the adrenaline in there body.
 

El Diablo

Post Whore
Messages
94,107
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/...iend-bust-raises-questions-20100607-xqwg.html

Ridicule or ridiculous: Friend bust raises questions
June 8, 2010

When does policing of sportsmen become overzealous, ask Rick Feneley and Brad Walter.

Would Jake Friend, rugby league star, be facing prosecution for possessing a handful of Valium tablets if he was Joe Citizen?

As one observer close to the Sydney Roosters hooker asked yesterday: ''How many people leaving McDonald's at Coogee, not Kings Cross but Coogee, are stopped by police and searched?''

That is precisely what happened at 11.50 on Saturday night to Friend and his teammate Todd Carney, two rehabilitated Roosters bad boys.

Reports suggest that police patrolling the promenade saw Friend, 20, allegedly hand a pill to Carney, 23, as they approached a car. The officers searched them and allegedly found Friend with a packet of Valium tablets that were prescribed for someone else. They charged him with possessing a prescribed substance. Carney was not charged.

Roosters officials insist there is an ''innocent explanation''. While everyone went to ground yesterday, a couple of such explanations have been suggested: that Friend may have wanted to use the Valium to relieve the pain of an elbow injury or from a substantial new arm tattoo.

Thousands of Australians resort to using Valium that is prescribed for someone else, often family members. While doctors warn this is alarming - and potentially dangerous - few people are prosecuted for it.

In the blogosphere yesterday, some Roosters fans wondered why police were bothering with Friend while ''real crims'' remained at large. Others said Valium use was rife among players to deal with pain after a game. Others still despaired that Friend was only reinstated to the team last month after his sacking in December following three alcohol-related police charges - the final straw when a taxi driver took the sleeping passenger to Randwick police station - and he became abusive when woken.

Roosters officials, meanwhile, have a message for Friend and Carney. Their latest brush may be unfair, but league stars will be judged by a tougher standard - particularly when they have been in trouble before.

In 2008, guilty verdicts were made on 653 charges for the same offence alleged against Friend, according the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research. But those figures do not spell out how many people were prosecuted solely for having a prescribed drug without a prescription.

Recently, for instance, bikies have been charged for this offence - while also being allegedly caught with illegal drugs and weapons.

One blog entry said yesterday: ''My wife has given me her prescription Valium. Should I now hand myself in to Coogee police? And is my wife now a drug supplier? All of a sudden she is more exciting! I'm living with a notorious woman!''

Friend's lawyer, Stephen Alexander, said it would be inappropriate to comment. His client will face Waverley Local Court on June 30 and the Roosters say they expect him to be cleared of any wrongdoing. Alexander said: ''We are trying to establish precisely what took place on the night.'' So are the fans. Cronulla beat the Roosters 42-18 that night.
 

Danish

Referee
Messages
32,018
I'd be anxious too if a copper found valium in my pockets with someone else's name on it.



I wouldn't be, as I would be long odds to even be arrested over it let alone charged.


But thats because I don't have a wrap sheet like Friend's
 
Messages
2,016
Thousands of Australians resort to using Valium that is prescribed for someone else, often family members. While doctors warn this is alarming - and potentially dangerous - few people are prosecuted for it.

Probably because most of the time people do it at home, not in the carpark at Maccas in front of police.

Whats the chances too that Friend gave the police a few smartarse comments, they got the sh*ts with him and so arrested him?
 

Tom Ace

Bench
Messages
2,594
Friend, Carney didn't take Valium

Didn't take Valium...blood tests have cleared Roosters pair Jake Friend (left) and Todd Carney of taking the drug but Friend is facing charges for possession. Picture: Gregg Porteous Source: The Daily Telegraph



BLOOD tests have cleared Roosters duo Todd Carney and Jake Friend of taking Valium following their clash against the Sharks.

Friend is facing charges for possessing the drug without a script after being searched by police at Coogee on Saturday night.
Carney was seen taking a tablet but the test results yesterday confirmed the pill was nothing but a painkiller given to him by club doctor John Orchard.
Sport Confidential has been told the high-profile duo requested the blood tests to prove they had not taken Valium, a drug used to treat anxiety.
The Roosters are hopeful the charges against Friend will be dropped as soon as Monday.
Carney has been on a booze ban since the start of the year and is deeply disappointed to have been drawn into the drama.


http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...idnt-take-valium/story-e6frexnr-1225877694378
 

mattyVOK

Bench
Messages
2,976
Friend, Carney didn't take Valium

Didn't take Valium...blood tests have cleared Roosters pair Jake Friend (left) and Todd Carney of taking the drug but Friend is facing charges for possession. Picture: Gregg Porteous Source: The Daily Telegraph



BLOOD tests have cleared Roosters duo Todd Carney and Jake Friend of taking Valium following their clash against the Sharks.

Friend is facing charges for possessing the drug without a script after being searched by police at Coogee on Saturday night.
Carney was seen taking a tablet but the test results yesterday confirmed the pill was nothing but a painkiller given to him by club doctor John Orchard.
Sport Confidential has been told the high-profile duo requested the blood tests to prove they had not taken Valium, a drug used to treat anxiety.
The Roosters are hopeful the charges against Friend will be dropped as soon as Monday.
Carney has been on a booze ban since the start of the year and is deeply disappointed to have been drawn into the drama.


http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...idnt-take-valium/story-e6frexnr-1225877694378

Great news, especially for Carney

It just goes to show that some police need to concentrate on the real crimes going on in the world!!
 

Latest posts

Top