Travis McLeod shows off a healthy stash of marijuana just a block or two from Fremantle Hospital.

Mr McLeod weild’s a shotgun.

A FREMANTLE businessman arrested on drug charges in Bali has an old MySpace account detailing a long love affair with illicit narcotics and a gangster lifestyle.

In several photographs posted in the early 2000s, Travis McLeod proudly stands amongst a thick crop of marijuana plants – Fremantle Hospital clearly visible just a block or two away in the background.

Among the budding plants is a sign proclaiming them “Freo’s Finest”, roughly the name of the shop he opened across the road from the city’s town hall in 2014 to sell drug paraphernalia such as fake Coke “stash” bottles, herbal remedies and kits to beat drug tests.

Later that year he started advertising “meth pipes”  on an online sales portal, but when the Herald pointed out that was illegal, Mr McLeod claimed it had been an administrative error and altered the advert to offer “glass pipes”.

His shop and home were raided by police in June 2015 during a protracted campaign to stamp out synthetic drugs, although Mr McLeod says he was only offering “herbal highs”.

Other photos from MySpace show Mr McLeod with hundreds of dollars of cash and a bag of weed in front of him, or a line of white powder while he counts a handful of $50 noteds.

Later he poses with a shotgun; a lip curl or gangster hand signals ever-present in the images.

Late last week Mr McLeod was arrested by Bali police, with reports conflicted about whether it was for trying to buy a small amount of methamphetamine or for selling it to two locals.

Kratom

Police reportedly found bags of the natural psychotropic substance kratom when raiding Mr McLeod’s unit in Kuta. 

The Indonesian government has announced kratom will be outlawed from 2022, but Mr McLeod has been advocating for its legalisation, saying it’s a great pain reliever.

Mr McLeod faces up to 12 years in prison if found guilty.

By STEVE GRANT