A Melbourne-based former reality TV personality and socialite facing drug trafficking charges has received a modification to her bail terms, after a court-monitored support program issued a strongly positive assessment of her progress, a Melbourne court confirmed on Tuesday.
Forty-three-year-old Brynne Edelsten, who previously gained public attention for her high-profile marriage to late Australian billionaire Geoffrey Edelsten and multiple reality television appearances, appeared alongside co-accused Simon Pienaar at the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Tuesday. During the hearing, the court scheduled a contested committal hearing for late July, which will determine whether the pair will proceed to a full criminal trial.
The pair were first taken into custody in late December last year, following a police raid on Edelsten’s Fitzroy residence. Investigators allege they seized multiple controlled substances during the search, including methamphetamine, the anabolic steroid testosterone, and ketamine. Prosecutors further claim Pienaar’s fingerprints were recovered from drug packaging found at the property. Both Edelsten and Pienaar are currently facing charges including commercial quantity methamphetamine trafficking and drug possession; neither defendant has entered a plea at this stage of proceedings.
Following the arrest, Edelsten was granted bail in late December, with a requirement that she participate in mandatory monitoring and support through Victoria’s Court Integrated Service Program (CISP). On Tuesday, Edelsten’s defense lawyer Veronika Drago requested an adjustment to these bail conditions to remove the CISP monitoring requirement. The court heard that the CISP, which has overseen Edelsten’s bail term since December, had itself recommended removing her from the program, citing her “excellent engagement” with all requirements, including consistent attendance at court-mandated counselling.
Magistrate Donna Bakos, who approved the bail adjustment, noted that the CISP report described Edelsten’s progress and rehabilitation efforts in “very glowing terms.” “It’s important I acknowledge you have participated to the best you can, which is excellent,” Bakos told the defendant. “I strongly encourage you to continue on that path.” Edelsten thanked the magistrate following the ruling, and declined to comment on the case to reporters as she left the court building.
Edelsten first became a household name in Australia following her 2009 marriage to Geoffrey Edelsten, a flamboyant billionaire medical entrepreneur and former owner of the Sydney Swans Australian Football League club. The pair had a 46-year age gap and held an extravagant, widely publicized wedding before separating in 2014. In the years following her divorce, Edelsten built a public profile as a media personality, appearing on high-rating reality series including *Dancing with the Stars*, *SAS Australia*, and her own reality docuseries *Brynne: My Bedazzled Life*.
Both Edelsten and Pienaar are scheduled to return to the Melbourne Magistrates Court on July 27 for the upcoming committal hearing.