The inquest into the kambo-related death of Jarrad Antonovich has taken a surprising turn, with new witnesses coming forward to police.
As a result, the rest of the planned dates this week have been abruptly cancelled by the state coroner, with the process set to begin again at Byron Bay Courthouse in late May.
The latest witnesses to give evidence have put two of the key players in the saga closer to the events which led to Mr Antonovich’s death, which happened at the Dreaming Arts Festival on a remote property north of Kyogle in 2021, after he ingested ayahuasca and kambo.
It’s been known for some time that the cause of death in a physical sense was a ruptured oesophagus, likely from retching, which is a standard response to ingesting poisons.
The main questions are why an ambulance was not called much sooner (after extreme facial swelling and pain had been reported), and why there was no one present with appropriate medical expertise, with different accounts of the day now having been heard from a number of witnesses.
Weird energy
One witness who was present at the retreat as a participant, Gareth Brewin, said he was shocked by what he saw, with Jarrad Antonovich receiving no medical aid although his face was swelled up as though with a ‘basketball pump’, and Lore Solaris telling the seriously unwell man it would be a good idea for him to take part in the ayahuasca ceremony which took place in the evening after the kambo ceremony, with the hope it might bring on a purge.
‘It was just a weird energy in the place,’ said Mr Brewin. ‘Like everyone knew it was fucked, what was going on.’
He said Lore Solaris told those present to keep the circumstances of Mr Antonovich’s death to themselves in order to protect ‘the good work of ayahuasca’, and was amazed to hear talk about holding another ceremony soon after the tragedy.
‘Are they fucking blind?’ he told a friend. ‘What a fucking joke.’
Late this week, the court was due to hear from the man who administered the kambo, Cameron Kite, and the spiritual leader in charge of the event, Lore Solaris, but this evidence will now be delayed until new testimony can be heard from others who were present.
Charges can only be laid by police once the coronial inquest is concluded.
Toll on family
The long drawn out inquest process continues to take a great emotional toll on Jarrad Antonovich’s family, who have repeatedly travelled up from Victoria to hear and give evidence.
Multiple legal representatives representing the various parties involved have made the process unusually slow and onerous, as the coroner seeks to reveal exactly what happened, to prevent this tragedy being repeated.
Counsel assisting the coroner, Dr Peggy Dwyer, is urging anyone else with knowledge of the events that took place at the Dreaming Arts Festival in October 2021 to contact either Detective Sergeant Michael Martin of Casino police on (02) 6662 0002, or Detective Senior Constable Doug Lack at Lismore police, on (02) 6626 0599.
The results of the related kambo inquest, into the 2019 death of Natasha Lechner, in Mullumbimby, will be revealed by the coroner in Byron Bay this Friday.
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