A man invited to dinner at Bruce Lehrmann’s luxury northern beaches rental that is being bankrolled by Channel 7 has been filmed using a credit card to chop up what appears to be white powder on a plate.
Mr Lehrmann and his golden retriever Sunny have been living in the apartment for months under a 12 month ‘exclusivity deal’ with the Seven Network signed in a deal to deliver a ‘tell-all’ interview to TV journalist Liam Bartlett.
News.com.au revealed over the weekend that the deal is set to expire on April 21.
The unemployed former Liberal staffer, who is studying for a law degree, has not worked full-time since he was charged but never found guilty of a single count of sexual intercourse without consent following Brittany Higgins’ accusation.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge, which was later dropped. He has always maintained his innocence.
The video was shared on Instagram on Sunday night by one of the guests invited to Mr Lehrmann’s dinner party and shows the group drinking wine and enjoying dinner.
In another image shared by Mr Lehrmann on Instagram, the group are shown seated around a table with a spread of food.
“The family minus a couple cause we don’t wait when the food this good,” Mr Lehrmann said in his own post.
The former Liberal staffer can be seen in footage uploaded by the guest, seated at the head of the table, and is sitting some distance away from the man chopping up a substance on the table.
The short video clip featuring the white powder was captioned “Bruce’s famous speech”, and was uploaded onto Instagram late on Sunday.
News.com.au has contacted Mr Lehrmann and his legal team for comment.
In previous evidence to the Federal Court Mr Lehrmann revealed that Channel 7 had been paying for his rental accommodation after the exclusive interview with him aired in May of 2023.
“And it was part of the agreement, isn’t it, that you were paid for 12 months of accommodation by Channel Seven?’’ barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC asked.
“Yes,’’ Mr Lehrmann replied.
Ms Chrysanthou SC asked if the agreement to pay Mr Lehrmann’s rent in the contract was from June 2023 to June 2024.
“Umm, well, yes. For filming in those places,’’ he replied.
Asked how much the year’s rent was worth, Mr Lehrmann said he didn’t know because the “network handled the accommodation arrangements”.
Executive producer Mark Llewellyn had previously told news.com.au in May that the Seven Network had not paid Mr Lehrmann for the exclusive interview.
“No one was paid,” Mr Llewellyn told news.com.au.
“7NEWS Spotlight made no payment to Bruce Lehrmann for the interview, however the program assisted with accommodation as part of the filming of the story.”
The Walkleys Foundation later stripped the Spotlight program from being a finalist for a journalism award after it emerged the network had agreed to pay his rent for a year in exchange for the story and not disclosed the arrangement.
Mr Lehrmann was initially installed in a beachside apartment complex with an in-ground pool and spa by the Seven Network in exchange for his “bombshell” interview.
The first apartment paid for by Seven was an apartment in Maroubra, in Sydney’s east, with “amazing water and coastal views”.
He has now been moved by Seven to a new apartment in Sydney’s northern beaches that again has water views.
The Seven Network later told journalists and the Walkleys Foundation that he wasn’t paid a fee for the interview but it had covered some accommodation costs during filming.
Mr Lehrmann is facing unrelated rape charges in Queensland. The former Liberal staffer has a date for a committal hearing to decide whether or not he will face trial on the new rape charges.
Mr Lehrmann, 28, is accused of raping a woman twice in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane, in October of 2021. He has denied the allegations and intends to plead not guilty.
Comment has been sought from the Spotlight program, the Seven Network, Mr Lehrmann and his legal team.