The family of Josh Jell are heartbroken at the death of the 23-year-old from Berwick, who was driven by a friend to Casey Hospital with another badly injured man on April 11.

Jell was close to members of an ice trafficking syndicate that police had described as the "top of the tree" when it came to dealing the drug in Warrnambool.

Several of the syndicate members moved to Melbourne's outer south-east after being released from prison.

Jell's friends have hinted at reprisals on social media, and the man who drove Jell to hospital lashed the media for reporting that he dumped his "brother" at the emergency department.

Nathan Clarke wrote on social media that he ran inside the hospital and yelled at staff for five minutes to help Jell, before his friend was taken from the backseat of the car by medical staff.

"Because I didn't wait to speak to police the media makes it look like I was some horrible friend that never cared," Clarke wrote.

"Regardless of the situation joshy you no [sic] yourself I would die for you and I love you so much.

"Hence why I didn't care about what may have happens [sic] to me I wasn't leaving my best friend where he was murdered ... I love you josh. Rest easy my brother."

Jell was laid to rest by family and friends in Berwick on Thursday, with dozens of brightly coloured balloons released in his memory.

Jell's family declined to comment, but his parents, brother and grandparents wrote in an obituary "our hearts are broken. Until we meet again".

A local said Jell had been a popular student at Beaconhills College, but had fallen in with the wrong crowd since high school.

Jell had been close to Jessica Pennery-Keenan and her boyfriend, Dylan Stone, who were part of a drug ring in Victoria's south-west that Warrnambool police said fuelled an ice epidemic in the region.

When Pennery-Keenan's stepfather, Mark Lockwood, was jailed for drug and weapons offences in October 2012, she "inherited" the family business.

She was supported by her mother, Nicole Lockwood, and Stone, and their syndicate had dominated the ice market in Warrnambool, police said.

Pennery-Keenan and her mother were sentenced to three months jail. Stone received a lengthier sentence as it was the second time he had been convicted of drug-related offences, and he also faced charges for a series of high-speed police pursuits.

A magistrate said last May that he was concerned Stone was still in a relationship with Pennery-Keenan, as he hoped Stone would shun drugs when released from prison.

Pennery-Keenan, 22, paid tribute to Jell online, saying she had been with him when he died.

"I will always remember that beautiful smile and gorgeous face that I got to look at the last moments of your life.

"I cannot tell you how much I am going to miss you.

"I love you too the moon and back my darling Josh Jell. Please stay with me forever."

A police spokeswoman said the investigation into Jell's death was ongoing. The injured man, a 26-year-old from Upper Beaconsfield who  police said also had a criminal history, is in a stable condition, but it is unclear if he is assisting detectives.