An astonishing photo of Bruce Lehrmann appearing to snort a white substance from his dining room table was taken as a joke and is actually just flour.
The photo was taken at Mr Lehrmann’s Sydney home over the weekend and showed him holding a friend’s chihuahua, also called Bruce, in one hand and a rolled-up five-dollar bill in the other.
On the table were two thick lines of powder, apparently ready for inhalation, with one line for Mr. Lehrmann and one line for Bruce the Chihuahua.
A friend also jokingly held a five-dollar bill in front of the dog’s nose.
On Wednesday morning, a gambler tried to auction photos of the scene to the highest bidder.
However, Daily Mail Australia can now reveal that the mystery substance was actually white flour left over from making homemade pasta earlier in the evening.
Mr. Lehrmann then provided another photo himself to prove it was a joke.
Pictured: Bruce Lehrmann with a chihuahua, also called Bruce, who jokingly posted a photo in front of a row of white flowers.
Pictured: A note Bruce Lehrmann wrote as a joke, asking friends to leave their phones at the door
He told Daily Mail Australia the situation was “obviously” a hoax and was shocked that someone had tried to sell the images to the highest bidder.
He said: ‘It’s very clear this is a joke in the last few days of amateur reporting.
“This is an inappropriate intrusion into my private life and a violation of my privacy.
“Any direct or indirect insinuation that something nefarious is going on is grossly defamatory.”
Another photo shows a note Lehrmann wrote as a joke, asking his friends to place their phones in a bowl when they entered his house.
It read: ‘Please deposit all electronic devices here. Bruce will take photos with you for a small fee.”
Bruce Lehrmann (pictured) was shocked when someone tried to sell the photos to the highest bidder
The photo was taken in response to a leaked video that surfaced earlier this week, showing one of Lehrmann’s dinner guests using a credit card to chop something onto a plate.
Mr. Lehrmann could be seen in the images sitting at the end of a table some distance from the man with the card and laughing.
He then shared a photo on Instagram of himself sitting at a table with food with a group of guests.
“The family minus a few because we don’t wait when the food is this good,” Lehrmann said in a caption.
Mr Lehrmann was accused by former colleague Brittany Higgins of raping her at Parliament House in 2019.
He faced a trial in 2022, but it was dropped due to juror misconduct and was never retried.
He has always maintained his innocence.