Australia records largest cocaine seizure in its history
Australian police have uncovered 2.7 tons of cocaine hidden inside underground bunkers concealed beneath shipping containers near Sydney, in what authorities describe as the largest cocaine seizure in the country's history, Qazinform News Agency reports, citing the Australian Federal Police (AFP).
The drugs were discovered on June 19 during a raid on a semi-rural property in Londonderry, west of Sydney, as part of Operation Minjiang, an investigation into an organized crime plot to import and distribute large quantities of drugs along Australia’s east coast.
According to investigators, the cocaine was stored in plastic tubs buried in underground bunkers concealed beneath false floors inside three shipping containers. Police estimated the shipment had a street value of about AUD 816 million and could have supplied around three million street-level drug deals.
Two men, aged 21 and 25, were arrested at the scene after allegedly attempting to flee on foot. Each was charged with possessing a commercial quantity of an unlawfully imported border-controlled drug, an offense carrying a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Police allege the cocaine was imported into Australia near Midge Point in North Queensland before being transported to Sydney at the behest of a Sydney-based organized crime group. Investigations into the group are continuing.
Operation Minjiang began in May after Queensland police officers responding to reports of a burnt-out flatbed truck discovered 40 kilograms of cocaine in the water near a boat ramp at Midge Point. The discovery led investigators to uncover a wider drug importation and distribution operation spanning Queensland and New South Wales.
Before the latest raid, authorities had seized 178 kilograms of cocaine and 142 kilograms of methamphetamine linked to the same investigation. The Londonderry discovery brought the total amount of drugs seized during Operation Minjiang to more than three tons.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Australian authorities had charged British actress Emaa Hussen over an alleged plot to import 320 kilograms of methamphetamine into the country.
