The former leader of the South Australian Liberal Party has broken his silence after shocking footage and photographs emerged that appeared to show him snorting a white powder at home in June.
The footage, released by The Advertiser on Monday night, shows David Speirs snorting a substance from a plate in his kitchen early in the morning and standing next to a white powder arranged in rows.
Mr Speirs has previously denied the authenticity of the video and there has been no allegation that he committed any wrongdoing.
In a statement on Wednesday, Speirs said he felt “exceptionally vulnerable and at risk.”
“The past few days have been extremely stressful for me and my loved ones,” he said.
‘This comes on top of a long period in the public eye, including four years as a minister and two years as leader of the opposition.
‘I left the party leadership because I had no more energy and the feeling of exhaustion has worsened in recent days.
‘As a result, my emotional health and well-being have been significantly affected, leaving me feeling extremely vulnerable and at risk.
An image of David Speirs and the alleged white powder in his home, which he claims is a ‘deepfake’
‘I have always put South Australians first, but now I need to take some time out to focus on my own health and wellbeing, as everyone else should.
‘I have consulted with medical professionals over the past 24 hours and have been advised to take some time off from work to focus on my health.
‘I intend to follow that advice and am now on medical leave, but I will consult with medical professionals regularly.
‘I am immensely grateful for the overwhelming support I have received from parliamentary colleagues, members of the Liberal Party and from my community.
“I do not intend to comment further on this matter and I have sought legal advice to assist me in resolving this difficult matter.”
Mr Speirs previously told The Advertiser the video was a “deepfake”, or artificially altered footage, and that he was the victim of an “elaborate hoax”.
But a report to The Advertiser by digital forensics analyst Dr Matthew Sorell found the video was authentic.
“Based on my detailed technical review, the photos and video appear authentic, internally consistent, and without evidence of manipulation of the content, metadata, or file structure,” he said.
The footage shows Mr Speirs snorting the unknown substance at 4:12am on June 30.
Mr Speirs, who represents the Black constituency in Adelaide’s south, was leader of the Liberal Party at the time and appeared at a public meeting at 11am that same day.
He resigned in early August and was replaced by Vincent Tarzia.
When reporters from the Advertiser asked Speirs for comment on the video, he said, “I would never have done that.”
“I would never have done that,” he said.
‘Never, never, never.
‘I’m quite shocked by that.
‘I was really shocked by that. I’m very sorry.’
Mr Tarzia said he had spoken to Mr Speirs and that Mr Speirs had told him the images were a deepfake.
Mr Tarzia said he urged Mr Speirs to report the video to police.
NewsWire has learned that the South African police have not received any reports about the video.
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas responded to the video on Tuesday, saying it was “all a bit breathtaking”.
“The images we saw on the front page of The Advertiser this morning are clearly disturbing, but they are a matter that concerns Vincent Tarzia and the SA branch of the Liberal Party alone,” he said.
‘The dysfunction, the division, the chaos, that is a matter for Vincent Tarzia and the Liberal Party.’