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Australia police seize meth-filled bras in record drugs bust
AFP
February 16, 2016, 4:58 am
Sydney (AFP) - Australian police discovered millions of dollars worth of methamphetamine hidden inside a shipment of bras, part of what they said Monday was the country's biggest ever drugs bust.
Officers found more than Aus$1 billion (US$712 million) of the lethally-addictive drug -- also known as ice -- in a series of raids.
More than a quarter of the stash was hidden in gel inserts used as padding for women's underwear.
Australian Federal Police Commander Chris Sheehan said the sting began in December 2015 when the Australian Border Force examined a shipping container in Sydney.
"That shipping container was found to contain gel bra inserts and hidden inside those gel bra inserts was 190 litres (50 gallons) of liquid methamphetamine," he said.
The seizure was referred to the Australian Federal Police who began an investigation that found a further 530 litres of the drug in storage units being used for art supplies.
Three Hong Kongers and a Chinese national were arrested during the joint operation with China, which Justice Minister Michael Keenan described as the largest seizure of liquid methamphetamine in Australian history.
"This has resulted in 3.6 million individual hits of ice being taken off our streets with a... value of Aus$1.26 billion," he said.
"This largest seizure of liquid methamphetamine to date is the result of organised criminals, targeting the lucrative Australian ice market from offshore."
In January, a 33-year-old Hong Kong man was arrested and charged in connection with the original seizure.
A further two Hong Kongers, a man, 37, and a 52-year-old woman, along with a Chinese man, 59, were also seized and charged with knowingly taking part in the manufacture of a commercial quantity of a prohibited drug.
"We are alleging that the people we have arrested weren't just mere bit-players, they were significant players within this criminal network," said Sheehan, adding that they all face life in prison if convicted.
The bust was part of a rare joint operation between the Australian Federal Police and the Chinese National Narcotics Control Commission -- the first combined effort targeting the booming ice market.
The two sides are co-operating to gather intelligence relating to concealment methods, trafficking routes and syndicates that move meth from southeast China into Australia.
"This critical international cooperation is already paying significant intelligence dividends," said Keenan.
The raid comes months after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull unveiled a Aus$300 million strategy to combat the growing use of ice, in the wake of a government report that revealed Australia had proportionally more users than most countries.
The report showed that the use of the drug had doubled since 2007 to more than 200,000 people in 2013, with anecdotal evidence of higher current numbers.
An Australian Crime Commission report published last year found that while US$80 bought one gram of ice in China, users in Australia had to pay US$500 for the same amount.
Ice bust: bra inserts used in record HK$7 billion drug import, police nab three Hongkongers and a mainlander
720 litres of liquid methamphetamine seized in joint operation between Australian and Chinese authorities
The joint operation began after the Australian Border Force found 190 litres of liquid methamphetamine in a shipment of gel bra inserts. Photo: AP
Three Hongkongers and a mainland Chinese man have been arrested in connection with the largest seizure of liquid methamphetamine, otherwise known as ice, in Australian history.
The operation led to a record seizure of 720 litres of liquid methamphetamine with an estimated street value of A$1.26 billion (HK$7 billion), Australian Federal Police said on Monday.
Around 190 litres of the liquid methamphetamine, concealed inside thousands of gel bra inserts, was discovered in December when Australian law enforcers examined a consignment that arrived from Hong Kong on Boxing Day last year, according to Australian police.
READ MORE: ‘Spider-Man’ informant given record reward for helping to bust drugs gang in southern China
“This has resulted in 3.6 million individual hits of ice being taken off our streets with a street value of A$1.26 billion,” said Australian Justice Minister Michael Keenan.
This largest seizure of liquid methamphetamine to date is the result of organised criminals, targeting the lucrative Australian ice market from offshore,” he added.
A topless man is arrested. Photo: SCMP Pictures
Australian Federal Police Commander Chris Sheehan said the joint operation with Chinese authorities began in December 2015, when the Australian Border Force examined a shipping container out of Hong Kong in Sydney. It originated in mainland China.
“That shipping container was found to contain gel bra inserts, and hidden inside those gel bra inserts was 190 litres of liquid methamphetamine,” he said.
The seizure was referred to the Australian Federal Police, who began an investigation which traced an additional 530 litres of liquid methamphetamine to five storage units in Sydney, where they were found inside art supplies.
In January, a 33-year-old Hong Kong man was arrested and charged in connection with the original seizure.
A further two Hongkongers, a man, 37, and a 52-year-old woman, along with a male Chinese national, 59, were also arrested and charged with knowingly taking part in the manufacture of a commercial quantity of a prohibited drug over the stash in the storage units.
The record drug haul shows some of the ways the contraband was imported. Photo: AP
Australian law enforcement officers had sought assistance from and exchanged intelligence with mainland authorities and Hong Kong Customs during the operation, according to a source with knowledge of the operation.
It is understood that the shipping container that carried the bra inserts was loaded on board an ocean-going vessel in Guangdong before the ship left for Sydney via Hong Kong.
The source said it was rare to seize liquid methamphetamine in Hong Kong.
“We believe [liquid methamphetamine] is tailor-made for this concealment method,” the source said. “We will closely monitor whether it will become a trend.”
Another source familiar with such operations said that this was the first time this concealment method had been encountered in Hong Kong.
According to Australian police, all charges carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
“We are alleging that the people we have arrested weren’t just mere bit players, they were significant players within this criminal network,” said Sheehan, adding that they all face life in prison if convicted.
The bust comes two months after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull unveiled an A$300 million strategy to combat the growing use of ice following a government report that Australia had proportionally more users than most countries.
The report showed that the use of the highly addictive drug had doubled since 2007 to more than 200,000 users in 2013, with anecdotal evidence of higher current numbers.
An Australian Crime Commission report published last year found that while US$80 bought one gram of ice in China, users in Australia had to pay US$500 for the same amount.
