A former Bondi Rescue lifeguard has appeared in court after being caught driving with illegal drugs in his system, then repeatedly trying to use a fake prescription to get a stash of seized pills back from police.
Tyson Macintosh, 29, pleaded guilty to three charges earlier this month and was due to be sentenced at Sydney's Waverley Local Court on Tuesday. His case was adjourned for three weeks.
Traffic stop in South Coogee
Agreed facts tendered by police, seen by the Daily Telegraph, state Macintosh was pulled over by officers on Cuzco Road in South Coogee at about 3pm on April 30. He had caught their attention after passing officers in his car, which then lost traction on four separate turns.
Macintosh initially demanded a warrant before agreeing to a roadside test, but eventually returned a positive saliva sample for cocaine, methamphetamine and cannabis. Officers also found a container of Clonazepam tablets in his pocket, a prescription-only benzodiazepine used to treat severe anxiety.
Fake prescription attempts
Macintosh claimed he had a prescription for the drug and attended Maroubra Police Station two days later carrying a Valium prescription, another type of benzodiazepine. Police refused to hand the pills back.
He returned to the station two days after that with the same script, slightly altered, and was again turned away. According to the tendered documents, Macintosh then left the station before returning shortly after with a new script, which he also emailed to police.
"The script has several inconsistencies and appears as though it was copy and pasted, however, in different font," the agreed facts stated. "Also of note was the drug Clonazepam was misspelt as Klonazepam."
Police said the doctor named on the prescription confirmed Macintosh had never been prescribed Clonazepam. He pleaded guilty to three charges: possessing a restricted substance, driving with an illicit drug present in his oral fluid, and using a false document to influence the exercise of a public duty.
Lifeguard career and Bondi Rescue role
Macintosh worked as a lifeguard for Randwick Council at Maroubra Beach between 2017 and 2022. He also spent a year working for Waverley Council on Bondi Beach, from 2020 to 2021.
It was during that stint that Macintosh appeared on Bondi Rescue, the long-running reality series that follows lifeguards on Sydney's Bondi Beach. He was introduced as a new recruit and featured in four episodes of season 16.
Asked at the time why he had switched to Bondi, Macintosh said: "I was up for more of a challenge... getting experience on the whole Eastern Suburbs coast lifeguarding. I felt like I did transition quite well, I had that experience in Maroubra and both management strategies were effective. It's good. A new challenge for me and we all work well together, we had quite a successful season so I'm happy with that."
Case adjourned
Macintosh's sentencing was adjourned for three weeks. He has since claimed on his LinkedIn profile to have worked in fitness, as a consultant and as a recruitment director.
