January 22nd, 2025Drug trafficking charge follows investigation into 2024 Clunes retreat death

A woman from Mount Macedon has been charged with drug trafficking in recent days, following a police investigation into a death at a retreat that was held in Clunes last April. 

No charges have been laid in relation to the death itself, however police say that during an investigation they found evidence the 53 year old Mount Macedon woman was trafficking drugs.

The investigation was launched after a Ringwood woman died on April 14, last year while at the retreat.

A Victoria Police statement said an autopsy had been conducted, but a cause of death was unable to be determined.

It also stated the Mount Macedon woman has been charged with trafficking psilocin, a hallucinogen found in psychedelic or “magic” mushrooms.

She will now be required to face the Bacchus Marsh Magistrates’ Court on January 29.

Following the Ringwood woman’s death last April, Soul Barn, the Clunes venue where the retreat took place, had distanced themselves from the private event.

In a social media post, the Soul Barn stated that it hired out its workshop space to external businesses, and that no one who had been working at the retreat was associated with Soul Barn.

“There are no words to express the deep sorrow and shock we are feeling here at Soul following the tragic incident that occurred,” the post had stated.

It had also stated: “We share the shock and devastation of everyone involved and our hearts are with those families affected.”

This story based on a Victoria Police report