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NEWS: Police target drugs sent in the post

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Verybuffed

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Police target drugs sent in the post

About 60kg of illegal drugs have been seized during a week-long operation targeting illicit substances being sent through the post, federal police say.

The joint operation with the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service has prevented millions of dollars of drugs reaching the streets.

Drugs seized during the operation have been found inside fluffy pink teddies, toys and figurines, according to News Ltd.

It said 145 seizures have been made since Monday and put the total value of the drugs at $9 million.

Across the country 20 people face criminal charges as a result of the operation, News Ltd says.

The operation ends on Friday afternoon.

Senior federal police and border protection officers are due to address the media on the subject on Friday morning.
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NEWS: 'Miaow' drug seized in mail busts

'Miaow' drug seized in mail busts

More than 73kg of illegal drugs hidden in items including children's toys and nappies have been seized and 22 people arrested during a week-long operation targeting Australia's mail system.

The drug 4-MMC, known as "miaow", accounted for nearly a third of the seizures.

The drug is legal in some countries, such as the UK, but it is illegal to buy or import into Australia.

"It is a dangerous drug, no question about it, and there have been dangerous deaths linked to miaow," Mr Zuccato said.

Three men have also been arrested in South America, charged with allegedly mailing cocaine to Sydney over a six-month period.

The joint operation between the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACPBS) has led to the seizure of 145 parcels nationwide since Monday, police said.

Drugs were found in children's soft toys, nappies and books, among other items, AFP Assistant Commissioner Kevin Zuccato (Zuccato) told reporters in Sydney today.

"I think what this demonstrates across the board is just how insidious organised crime is and the callousness of these individuals who would choose to hide narcotics in kids' toys and possibly put kids at risk," Mr Zuccato said.

A total of 22 men have been arrested in Australia.

They include 10 in NSW aged between 20 and 46, 10 in Victoria aged 20 to 36, and four men in Queensland aged between 22 and 35.

Charges are yet to be laid against the men.

The AFP worked with international authorities to dismantle a drug mailing operation in Peru and Colombia.
A 60-year-old man has been arrested in Colombia and two men, aged 55 and 25, have been arrested in Peru in connection with the operation.

Three packages each containing 300g of cocaine were intercepted in Sydney between August and December 2009, while two packages bound for Sydney, also containing 300g of cocaine, were seized by Peruvian authorities.

Other items seized included firearms, fake driver's licences and passports, counterfeit DVDs and CDs, and $152,000 in cash.

"This is about demonstrating to those people who want to bring narcotics into our country, whether it's in envelopes, whether it's in packages, containers, strapped to people's bodies or inside them, we are on the job and we are waiting for them," Mr Zuccato said.
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"I think what this demonstrates across the board is just how insidious organised crime is and the callousness of these individuals who would choose to hide narcotics in kids' toys and possibly put kids at risk," Mr Zuccato said.
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What a load of shit. How ridiculous to suggest that children may get a hold of these imported, packaged-in-boxes items and somehow consume the drugs buried deep within them.

Could it be any more obvious that they said this simply to rile up the public.... as per usual.
 
No matter how much they try, i'd say a good 50% + of drugs and contraband are mailed into this country. except for heroin which is probably brought in by mostly couriers and internal smugglers. And the rest, cooked here on our shores...

I saw these stories on the internet, what is with all this bullshit about self mutilation and castration - people believe this is happening here, and theres no proof it happened at all - it's bullshit made up by uk tabloids.
 
"Charges are yet to be laid against the men."

Still no charges.

Haha, I've heard it called almost every thing but miaow by users.
 
oh yeah customs would be international ... had few pipes today so bit dazed and confused so you must forgive me.. hehe

but interstate is also used alot ...

drugs being sent from overseas to here is so OLD news I guess the police just want to make something seem a new thing for their glorified appeal when infact its been going on forever.
 
man i saw this on the news too. miaow... honestly nobody I know calls it that. but seriously mephedrone is amazing, honestly its only going to be a matter of time before it is compleltely reschedules instead of just being stuck in the gray area of being an analogue.
 
What I always wondered was what percentage of the total pieces of mail do they intercept that has contraband in it. 145 seizures out of how many millions of pieces of mail?
 
alanzs said:
What I always wondered was what percentage of the total pieces of mail do they intercept that has contraband in it. 145 seizures out of how many millions of pieces of mail?
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Australian Customs are the best in the world, make no doubt about it. There's only a few ports of entry (unlike the USA for example), and it's an island nation with very, very low #s of mail volume (relative to, say, USA/Europe).

Also, obviously have tricks of the trade; here's an example. Operation Raw Deal (google it) was a DEA bust on importation of raw steroid powder from China (AFP was involved also). It took them years to catch on, but when they figured out it was happening, they basically scrutinised everything coming from China. And of course there's other high risk countries (South American, SE Asia.... LOL, most of the non-white world I guess :\)

Remember when Korea tried to import heroin via ship and they sent frogmen out in dinghies to hide >1 tonne of H on the beach near Lorne? Now that's the way to get stuff into the country IMO... the USA has problems patrolling the Florida coastline -- look at how much coastline Oz has! The problem is the market here isn't worth the effort I'd suspect

isnt it something like, for every person they do catch, another 10 get thru?
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Probably, but I think this is more applicable to couriers (ie mules @ airports).
 
Australian customs are hardly infallable. Don't know where you get your data from - but from personal experience - they can't detect even a 3rd of the shit coming into this country. sure we have a smaller volume of mail, but it's hardly miniscule - and the few people they have doing the job at any one time cant get everything. They're human - not ion scanners.
 
Just a little more information on the recent busts. Although a lot of the information has already been posted there is some additional detail provided in this media release.


Parcel-post operation nets 73kg of drugs and 25 arrests
Friday, 12 February 2010

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS) have prevented more than 73kg of drugs from hitting the nation’s streets in a joint operation targeting drug importation via the mail system.

Having seized 145 parcels nation-wide, this week’s operation involved every Australian state and territory, included 78 search warrants and has currently resulted in 22 Australian arrests.

The AFP also joined forces with international authorities to dismantle a transnational drug syndicate, with three men arrested in South America for allegedly importing cocaine into Sydney via the mail system.

A 60-year-old man was arrested in Colombia, while Peruvian authorities arrested a 55-year-old man and 25-year-old man on trafficking charges.

It will be alleged the men were part of a long-standing international syndicate that had been importing cocaine to Sydney in parcel-post consignments sent from Argentina and Peru.

The AFP intercepted three consignments of cocaine in Sydney in August, November and December 2009, each containing approximately 300g of cocaine. Peruvian authorities had also seized two consignments bound for Australia, each containing approximately 300g of cocaine.

AFP National Manager for Serious and Organised Crime, Assistant Commissioner Kevin Zuccato, said the extensive operation demonstrated the effectiveness of the AFP’s international liaison officer network and its capability of working collaboratively with both national and international law enforcement agencies.

“The AFP is committed to disrupting all levels of organised crime,” Assistant Commissioner Zuccato said.

“While some importations are opportunistic ventures by individuals, organised crime is also involved in importations via the mail system.

“The AFP remains vigilant about combating all facets of the drug trade. Operations such as this provide intelligence that helps to maintain an understanding of the current criminal environment.

“The majority of importations via the mail system are low volume, but they can pose a considerable cumulative threat. These consignments contribute towards supplying the Australian drug market and exacerbate social problems within Australia associated with drug harm.”

Other items seized during the operation included counterfeit licences, DVDs and CDs, as well as improvised weapons and drug-making equipment.

“Organised crime groups deal in many different commodities and are involved in any crime types that will make them money,” Assistant Commissioner Zuccato said.

More than 10,000 parcels have been seized through the mail system at Australia’s borders in the past five years, preventing almost 1600kg of drugs from hitting Australian streets.

Customs and Border Protection spokesperson, National Manager Border Targeting John Gibbon, said the agency played a vital role in preventing the illegal movement of people and goods across Australia’s borders.

“We work cooperatively with other agencies to ensure that we detect, seize and prohibit the importation of prohibited goods into Australia – including through international mail.

“This successful operation, which has involved Customs and Border Protection officers in every state and territory, demonstrates the effectiveness of our and our partners’ efforts to protect the Australian community.”

NATIONAL WEEK OF ACTION

FACT SHEET

Overall statistics:

More than 420 AFP and Customs members involved

78 search warrants executed

25 arrested (22 in Australia and 3 international)

Approximately 73 kilograms of drugs stopped from reaching Australia’s streets

Investigative activity took place Australia wide:

Australian Capital Territory - 2

New South Wales - 77

Queensland - 26

South Australia - 5

Tasmania - 3

Victoria - 47

Western Australia – 7

Northern Territory - 2

Media enquiries:
AFP Media (Canberra): (02) 6275 7100


AFP National Media Release
 
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