An international wanted man who has been called a “major player” in Australia’s underworld has been detained for his alleged involvement in smuggling drugs worth $80 million into the nation.
On Sunday afternoon, a 47-year-old New South Wales resident was detained on the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia and charged with a number of trafficking offences involving the importation of methamphetamine, cocaine, ecstasy, cannabis, and money laundering.
50 kilograms of meth were discovered inside a vehicle at Port Wakefield in April 2021, prompting Operation Ironside detectives to capture the individual who had left Australia.
The Australian Federal Police discovered his accused syndicate using the phoney encrypted chat software AN0M, which was created by US and Australian officials to monitor organized criminal networks.
The FBI is also looking into the man, according to the police, who claim he was the head of an international crime ring.
The alleged drug lord allegedly oversaw the complex operation that saw methamphetamine worth $60 million to $80 million smuggled into Australia.
Additionally, he is accused of overseeing the illegal importation of cannabis valued at “millions of dollars,” kilograms of cocaine, thousands of ecstasy pills, and kilograms of ecstasy powder.
He will be charged with 17 counts of money laundering, 15 counts of trafficking a large commercial quantity of a controlled substance, nine charges of trafficking a commercial quantity of a controlled substance, and five counts of trafficking a controlled substance.
On Monday morning, he made a brief appearance in Adelaide Magistrates Court and was subsequently remanded in custody.
According to Detective Chief Inspector Darren Fielke, the arrest is just the most recent in a series of high-profile busts.
We are aware that this man left Australia so that he could continue his wicked criminal operations undetected.
We are aware that some individuals help organized crime flourish; all of these individuals are on our radar.
“We’ll examine every aspect of organized crime and work to eradicate it.” This arrest ought to serve as a warning to anyone considering joining organized crime in any capacity.
“SAPOL and law enforcement partners both in Australia and abroad will leave no stone unturned to discover and bring to justice those involved in organized crime and who pour misery on the community through the trafficking of drugs,” the agency’s website states.