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Stickers that must be peeled off Alibarbar vapes have become a common sight outside illicit tobacco stores.
Alibarbar is the brand of choice for the organised crime cartel that controls hundreds of shops around the country that sell contraband tobacco and e-cigarettes.
Law enforcement and underworld sources, who cannot be identified publicly, say the syndicate allegedly run by underworld kingpin Kazem “Kaz” Hamad is driving a market takeover by Alibarbar, using threats and extortion to ensure its illegal distribution network is pushing the brand.
Hamad was a Melbourne-based organised crime figure who was deported to his native Iraq in mid-2023 after a lengthy prison sentence for drug trafficking. The 41-year-old has since allegedly launched a street war for control of the multibillion-dollar illicit tobacco market.
“It was all about the cigarettes at the start. But the gangs realised they were losing money by not running the vapes too,” said an underworld source with a connection to the syndicate.
Three sources in federal law enforcement, the underworld and tobacco industry said the deal also linked the Hamad syndicate and its partners with a China-based crime group run by a mysterious figure known as “Chinese Simon”, which has been connected to running massive drug and tobacco-smuggling operations into Australia in the past.
AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett has declared Hamad a “national security threat”.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
The “Chinese Simon” syndicate has previously been designated by law enforcement authorities as an Australian Priority Organisation Target, which classifies it as a serious national organised crime threat.
The group exerts end-to-end control from export from China to smuggling to distribution and retailing in Australia.
It also has suspected links to a major Australian logistics company that was the listed consignee on the Alibarbar shipment seized by the ABF in July, according to confidential sources.
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The gangland-backed attempts to push the Alibarbar brand has caught the ABF and Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) off guard as both agencies state that they do not track the identities of illicit brands seized during operations and cannot provide a breakdown of their market share.
“More than 12 million illegal vapes ... have been taken off the streets by the ABF and TGA since January 2024,” a TGA spokesperson said.
Industry market intelligence provided to The Age shows Alibarbar began appearing in illicit tobacco shops in May 2024. By August 2025, it was reportedly being stocked in more than 90 per cent of shops.
A Victoria Police source confirmed that the Hamad cartel is deploying the same tactics of intimidation it used to gain a stranglehold over the tobacco market with its move into vapes.
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Under the racket, shop owners are forced to sell particular brands at prices set by the cartel, paying $5000 a month “tax” to operate in a given territory. Those who break the rules are ruthlessly threatened with firebombings and shootings.
There is massive money to be made from illicit vapes. The ABF and TGA estimate more than $600 million worth of vapes have been seized by authorities since the importing ban was introduced.
This is expected to represent only a fraction of the supply being distributed by the syndicate’s retail shops, of which more than 500 are under their direct control and hundreds more pay the so-called “Kaz tax” to operate and sell illicit tobacco brands such as Manchester and Double Happiness.
Alibarbar vapes sell for $35 to $50 per unit.
It remains unclear what the manufacturer of Alibarbar knows about the wholesale illicit distribution of its product in Australia.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration says more than 12 million illegal vapes have been taken off Australian streets since January 2024.Credit: iStock
Chinese incorporation records show the company behind Alibarbar, Shenzhen Dali Wanwei Technology Co Ltd, was founded in late 2023. The company did not respond to a request for comment.
Alibarbar has branched out from vapes to nicotine pouches and even smoking replacement aids such as nicotine gum.
In July 2024, government agency IP Australia granted a trademark over the Alibarbar name and logo to the Chinese company despite the sale of its smoking products remaining illegal in Australia.
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It is unclear what relationship, if any, Alibarbar’s parent company in China has to a string of retailers in Australia using its brand name in promotional materials.
A website purporting to be set up as Australia’s “official Alibarbar vape supplier”, which offers to ship the vapes locally, is registered to a block of townhouses in Canberra.
“In the heart of Australia, where the sun shines bright and the landscapes are breathtaking, a vaping revolution is taking place,” the website claims in its advertising.
Another online Australian distributor that uses an official-appearing Alibarbar corporate logo contains information about local staff who do not appear to exist, according to the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
Neither of the purported Australian businesses responded for a request for comment.
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