$180 million drug haul: Meth, cocaine hidden in shipment of coffee beans
Australian authorities have uncovered more than $180 million worth of illicit drugs hidden inside a shipment of coffee beans bound for Melbourne.
The shipment, delivered from the Central American nation of Panama, contained 200 kilograms of methamphetamine and six kilograms of cocaine stashed with the beans inside a sea container.
Methamphetamine and cocaine were found inside a shipment of coffee beans sent to Melbourne from Panama.Credit:Australia Federal Police and Australian Border Force
Australian Border Force officers uncovered the stash after an X-ray showed anomalies in the container. The substances were later tested and returned positive results for meth and cocaine.
Australian Federal Police estimates the meth alone would have resulted in about 2 million street deals with a total value of more than $180 million. The cocaine could have been sold in approximately 30,000 deals with a total estimated street value of up to $2.4 million.
The drugs were stashed inside several gym bags and hidden amid the coffee beans.
It is unclear whether the shipment has been linked to any known crime syndicates operating in Australia. The AFP is yet to make any arrests in relation to the haul.
Federal Police Detective Superintendent Jason McArthur said the agency had launched an investigation into the criminal syndicate behind the shipment and its organisers in Australia and overseas.
“This significant seizure, concealed inside a shipment of coffee beans, demonstrates we are one step ahead of these criminal networks,” he said.
The drugs uncovered in the shipment.Credit:Australia Federal Police and Australian Border Force
Border Force acting Commander Uriah Turner said officers worked in partnership with other agencies to disrupt the importation of illicit substances by translational criminal networks.
“Our technical expertise and sophisticated technology means that we will find the drugs, regardless of the method of concealment these criminals use,” Turner said.
Anyone with information that may assist investigators is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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