Darko ‘Dougie’ Desic get permanent residency in Australia after a 30 year run
A permanent visa for residence in Australia has been awarded to Darko "Dougie" Desic, a fugitive-turned-handyman-turned-famous figure in Sydney.
He also gets the right to remain in his chosen country for the first time in decades and a Medicare card.
Desic, also known as "Dougie," made news around the world last year when he turned himself into the New South Wales police after 29 years on the run, telling the officers at the Dee Why station, "I believe you've been looking for me."
Desic, who is now 65 years old, escaped from Grafton jail in 1992 with just over a year and a half remaining on a 44-month sentence for growing marijuana out of fear of being deported to Yugoslavia and drafted into the country's army, which was at the time engaged in a terrible civil war.
Desic had been lurking in plain sight for nearly thirty years since his escape, developing a sort of reputation on Sydney's northern beaches. He established a successful career as a labourer, odd-job tradesman, and beloved resident of the beaches.
But after Covid stopped doing his side employment and the property he was staying in was sold, Desic was left without a place to live and was forced to sleep on sand dunes. To obtain a roof in the pandemic, he surrendered.
Desic was given a penalty of serving the remaining 19 months of his sentence as well as an extra two months for evading justice, according to magistrate Jennifer Atkinson.
Desic was transferred to Villawood Immigration Detention Center when his new sentence expired in December of last year. Given that the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was disbanded in 1992, Desic faced the unusual prospect of being sent back to a nation that no longer existed.
However, Desic received a permanent residency visa and a medicare card on Monday.
He was infamous for using pliers to remove his own teeth when they were in bad shape because he was unable to obtain healthcare during his years on the run.
He was also compelled to forgo other forms of identification, such as a driver's licence, which left him with no choice except to take the bus or walk to employment all around Sydney. He was unable to apply for Centrelink or any other social benefits because he lacked a legal identity.
Since Dougie's release from prison, a widespread campaign to "Free Dougie" has energised Sydney's northern beaches through letters to lawmakers and online petitions.
