I am not him. I'm really not but honestly I don't care if you think I am him, I am simply trying to help you out by explaining the situation here in Australia. I am not debating with you the ethics behind his actions (I think it's scumbag behavior myself), I am saying as an Australian who uses gold selling to top up my income how it works here.
We have weird laws and weird ways of working on certain issues (particularly virtual commodities) and what I have said is not wrong regarding the typical outcomes. I know because I have been down this pathway when I got scammed out of gold I was selling. In that case since the commodity was legal I literally logged a complaint with the small claims court and the consumer watchdog in my state and recovered my money.
I mean think about it "My dr_g dealer screwed me out of my money" do you really think they will let me sue him for them money? Like seriously? You entered in to a transaction where you were trading what is considered illegal in Australia. Thus by Australian law you have no contract in place and thus you have no protection under Australian law.
Additionally if you report the matter to the police it's bit like reporting your dealer for selling you dr_gs, they will likely charge you as well for you role in the matter.
But if you are going to sue him I would use an Australian lawyer as they will know the avenues you have available to you here where the guy supposedly lives. Personally I would hit up my bank first and see if they can help recover it for you because suing someone will likely cost more than that in fees and court expenses.
It can also back fire when they call the cops on you. And you get done instead.