'Kidnapping' of legendary spinner Stuart MacGill takes a turn as police show up to his apartment and take him away for questioning - after claiming he was held for ransom by a crime gang
- Stuart MacGill was allegedly assaulted and kidnapped on Wednesday April 14
- Police allege the former Test cricketer was confronted in Cremorne, Sydney
- He was allegedly forced into a car and held at gunpoint in the western suburbs
- Police have arrested four men as investigations into alleged kidnapping continue
- MacGill played 44 Test matches for Australia and three One Day Internationals
- He was driven away from his apartment by detectives on Wednesday morning
- Police said MacGill was a 'victim of crime' and the motive for attack is unknown
Cricket legend Stuart MacGill has been taken away by detectives for questioning after he was allegedly kidnapped at gunpoint from Sydney's lower north shore.
But police said the former Australian Test cricketer was 'purely a victim of crime' when he was confronted by three men at Cremorne, about 8pm on April 14, forced into a car and driven to the city's outskirts where he was allegedly assaulted and threatened with a gun.
MacGill reported the attack to police six days later on April 20.
The 50-year-old leg-spinner had been working at a nearby Greek restaurant owned by his girlfriend, when a 46-year-old man and two other males confronted him near the intersection of Parraween and Winne Streets.
Police Robbery and Serious Crime Squad commander Anthony Holton said the motive behind MacGill's abduction was unknown, but he said it was not related to the cricketer owing a debt.
'I can say his kidnapping is not involved in any other backstory that leads to him having a personal debt to other people that he had to pay back,' Supt Holton said.
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'He's purely being treated as a victim of this kidnapping'.
An hour after arriving at the Bringelly address, MacGill, who played 44 Test matches for Australia and three One Day Internationals, was then driven to the Belmore area, in the city's south-west, where he was released and dumped by his alleged attackers, police said.
As detectives from the Robbery and Serious Crime Squad continued to probe the incident on Wednesday morning, MacGill was led out of his luxury apartment by plain clothed detectives and taken to a waiting police car, just before 11am.
MacGill, who was wearing jeans and a hoodie, crouched in the back of the unmarked SUV as it drove off towards a nearby police station where he is understood to have given a statement about the April 14 alleged attack.
'We believe the motive was purely financial, to obtain money from him,' police said in a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
'They are a criminal gang, it was a targetted kidnapping with the motivate to take money from him with no ransom.'
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Four men - aged 27, 29, 42 and 46 - were arrested by police at about 6am on Wednesday.
They were taken to local police stations for questioning while police carried out raids on homes in Sutherland, Caringbah, Brighton Le-Sands, Banksia and Marrickville.
A 27-year-old man was arrested at Caringbah, while a 29-year-old man was arrested at Sutherland. The pair were both charged with participate criminal group contribute criminal activity and take/detain in company with intent to get advantage occasion actual bodily harm.
A 46-year-old man was arrested at Brighton Le Sands, while a 42-year-old man was arrested at Banksia.
Police said the older man was charged with take/detain in company with intent to get advantage occasion actual bodily harm, participate criminal group contribute criminal activity and supply prohibited drug.
The younger man was charged with knowingly direct activities of criminal group and take/detain in company with intent to get advantage occasion actual bodily harm.
All four men were refused bail and are due to face Sutherland Local Court on Wednesday.
MacGill was in the news back in 2019 after he was caught behind the wheel while almost three times over the legal limit.
He had an 'unknown number of glasses of red wine' when police pulled him over on Military Road, in Sydney's north shore, late on November 21, 2019.
In 2017, he agreed to an apprehended violence order (AVO) taken out by police on behalf of his ex-girlfriend Julie Singleton.
Police applied for the order after an incident between MacGill and Ms Singleton - the ex-wife of multi-millionaire John Singleton - in December 2016.
He was served the AVO on Boxing Day that year and later agreed to it in court without admitting fault.
MacGill has two kids with ex-wife Rachel Friend. He married the former Neighbours actress in 2000 before separating in 2013.
MacGill, who is originally from Perth, made his Test debut in Adelaide against South Africa in 1998.
He has been acknowledged as having the best strike-rate of any modern spin bowler but was unlucky to find himself in the mix at the same time as cricket legend Shane Warne.
He struggled to hold his place in the squad as there was hesitation to have two wrist-spinners at once.
MacGill retired from Test cricket in 2008.