Australian Police Seize $50M in Cocaine from Container at Brisbane

 

The Australian Border Force is looking for help from the public in identifying the importers of a large cargo of cocaine, which was seized from the inside of a shipping container at Brisbane late last month. 

On May 27, the ABF received a tip about a suspicious box that had recently arrived by sea. They x-rayed the container and found signs of possible drug cargo. On opening, they found five plastic-wrapped satchels filled with bricks of cocaine, sitting unconcealed atop a conventional cargo of polyethylene plastic material. The placement is typical of the "rip-on/rip-off" smuggling method, in which a container of ordinary goods is "contaminated" with drugs at some point in its journey. 

AFP testing revealed that the shipment totaled about 250 kilos of cocaine, worth about US$50 million in Australia's hyperinflated drug market. 

“I want to commend the highly skilled officers in our supply chain and cargo teams who were vital to the interdiction of this dangerous consignment," ABF commander Troy Sokoloff said. "The ABF, in close collaboration with the AFP, have eyes and ears everywhere. Our sophisticated intelligence networks, advanced screening technology and unwavering commitment to safeguarding the community mean that your attempts will be detected, your drugs will be seized, and you will be held to account."

Australia has the world's most active cocaine market (per capita), and the drug commands eye-watering prices on the street. Gram for gram, cocaine is worth about twice as much as gold in Australia, making the country a prime destination for smugglers in search of high profits.