How a hippie 'healer' from Bondi was recruited by the Calabrian mafia on a holiday in Dubai for cocaine plot

By ASHLEY NICKEL, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 10:08, 27 April 2026 | Updated: 10:21, 27 April 2026 A former sex worker turned 'energy healer' will spend at least eight months in jail after helping an international cocaine ring launder $400,000. Delina Stevenson, 30, was sentenced by NSW District Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to one count of recklessly dealing with money at the risk of it becoming an instrument of crime. The court heard Stevenson was recruited while in Dubai in November 2023 for a working holiday. She was introduced to Italian national Pasquale Zappia who instructed her on how to funnel money through her Bondi-based sex business, the Pleasure Paradigm. The Sydney woman received almost $400,000 across 22 transactions between December 2023 and January 2024, of which she took a 15 per cent cut. Those funds were then sent back to Zappia and his associates and were later used to buy 10kg of cocaine.  Court documents, seen by News.com.au, showed Stevenson was arrested in February 2025 following an investigation by the Australian Border Force. Zappia and Melbourne pizza chef Salvatore Formica, who have both been linked to the Calabrian mafia, or 'Ndrangheta, were also identified in the investigation. Delina Stevenson (above) was sentenced to eight months' jail for laundering cocaine money Stevenson (above) was recruited while doing sex work in Dubai in November 2023 Stevenson was previously stopped by the ABF as she returned to Sydney in June 2024, during which officers downloaded a series of WhatsApp messages between her and Zappia. Stevenson previously told the court she initially wasn't aware the money would be used for illegal purposes.  'I didn't know what I was doing was wrong until further down the track,' she said during her cross-examination. She admitted it was a 'slip of judgement' to begin the transactions but she'd felt an 'obligation' to continue.   The court heard Stevenson had moved on from her life of 'drugs and partying' and was studying 'alternative healing'. On her website, she offers 'Quantum Energy Healing' sessions for around $200. Her lawyer argued his client should serve her sentence in the community as she would be 'particularly vulnerable' in jail because she's 'naive'. 'She's a young lady. She's attractive,' he told the court. Stevenson (above) was sent almost $400,000 through her sex work business, which she then sent back in exchange for a 15 per cent cut 'She's clearly somebody that doesn't have a great understanding of the world or the criminal justice process.' However, NSW District Court Judge Nicole Noman SC didn't buy that Stevenson was 'naive'. 'She's a woman who has been able to travel the world and perform business activities,' she said. 'She's strikes me as somebody that has great capacity … if you're saying with and getting involved in the offence … but I'm not sure about generally naive.' Judge Noman ruled 'no sentence other than full-time custody' was appropriate for Stevenson's offences. She was sentenced to two years and three months behind bars, to be released after eight months on a recognisance release order. That order requires Stevenson to be on good behaviour for three years. She was seen hugging relatives int he courthouse before being taken into custody. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.