Ocean rescue leads police to ‘mother ship’ drug smuggling plot

Nine men have been charged and are accused of conspiring to import tonnes of cocaine and methamphetamine before distributing the drugs across Australia using trucking connections.

A 10-month investigation by Australian Federal Police, Victoria Police, Australian Border Force and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission resulted in the arrests of eight men in Victoria and one in Sydney.

The men, aged between 31 and 72, have been charged with offences relating to drug trafficking and seven of them face the possibility of life in prison if convicted.

Police say they were first alerted to the alleged syndicate when four crew members were rescued from a commercial trawler which sank off the Victorian coast.

The crew’s movements were monitored after police became suspicious about why they had travelled out to sea in bad weather and were without the usual commercial fishing equipment.

It is alleged the group tried to travel into Bass Strait multiple times to a drop zone where they would have received significant quantities of drugs from a “mother ship” travelling through Australian waters.

Police say these attempts were unsuccessful.

Four of the men have also been charged in relation to the separate seizure of 30 kilograms of methamphetamine in Perth in August and 41 kilograms of cocaine in regional Victoria days later.

It is alleged the syndicate was using connections in the trucking industry to move the drugs between states.

AFP Detective Superintendent Ray Imbriano said organised crime groups were sending their business to Australia because of the “insatiable” demand for illicit drugs and a willingness by the community to pay top dollar for them.

“These are not harmless substances, and apart from the health consequences, drug importations fuel violence between rival gangs in our suburbs,” Imbriano said.

“This violence too often leaves innocent Australians caught in the crosshairs.”

AAP

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