The man who starred as the ‘Solo Man’ in an iconic ad from the 1980s has been arrested in Cambodia after being allegedy found with drugs.
The star of the iconic ‘Solo Man’ Schweppes drink ad has been arrested for alleged drug activity in Cambodia, after earlier prison terms in the same country and in Thailand.
Mark Robert Coutelas was once the face of the Schweppes fizzy lemon drink Solo, featuring in a popular mid-1980s TV commercial series, Solo Lemon, The Thirst Crusher.
In the ads the then fit and muscly 35-year-old did man-of-action feats like canoeing off a cliff or whitewater rafting rapids before downing a can of Solo as a reward for his efforts.
According to the Kampot Provincial Police, at 4.30am on Friday, September 25, specialised forces raided Coutelas’ home at Kampong Bay South Village, Kampot City in southwestern Cambodia.
In a crackdown on drug trafficking and distribution, police seized five drug packages, including four packages of white crystalline powder plus a package of cannabis.
Last week’s Cambodian police mugshot of Mark Coutelas, 60, the one-time action man looks totally different from his days as the 'Solo Man' in the Schweppes drink ads.Source:Supplied
Coutelas as ‘Solo Man’ in the 1980s when he starred in the Schweppes drink ad series performing man-of-action feats like canoeing off cliff faces.Source:Supplied
The cannabis and white crystalline powder allegedly found in the home of Coutelas in southern Cambodia.Source:Supplied
They arrested Coutelas, 60, and a female companion, Tok Chany, and detained them in custody for questioning. It is not known if she has been charged.
Ms Chany, 35, comes from Kampong Speu Province, outside the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, 150km north of where she was arrested with Coutelas.
Coutelas was arrested in 2017 in the coastal Cambodian resort of Sihanoukville in 2017, for using and selling methamphetamine, or ice.
Then aged 57, he was jailed on charges of unlawful transporting or trafficking of narcotics.
He was also arrested in Phuket, Thailand in 2014 in possession of crystal methamphetamine, possession of an illegal hand gun and ammunition, and was sentenced to two years in prison.
In 2015, he was released early on parole, then deported.
Mark Coutelas in 2017 with fellow arrestees, when he was charged for selling methamphetamine in the coast resort of Sihanoukville.Source:Supplied
His current co-accused, Tok Chany, 35.Source:Supplied
Mark Coutelas a few years ago.Source:Supplied
The former Sydney private schoolboy’s social media page is littered with photos of him enjoying the company of young women. Picture: Facebook.Source:Supplied
Coutelas, a former Sydney private schoolboy, who studied science and anatomy at Sydney University, worked as an osteopath and chiropractor in Australia.
In 2016, he moved to Cambodia and set up a practise called Back Pain Solutions in Sihanoukville but was arrested the following year and the business closed down.
His social media pages are full of images of him enjoying the company of young women and quotes like “Life is too important to take seriously.”