The Australian/NZ Drug Busts Mega-Thread Part I

[lil angel15]

Cannabis crop smoked out
10th July 2007 11:05:45 AM

Seized ... A total of 16 hydroponically grown cannabis plants were taken by police after raids on two houses.

POLICE have arrested four people and seized a total of 16 cannabis plants after raids on two homes in the Werribee area last week.

Members from the Geelong Regional Response Unit executed the early afternoon search warrants at homes in Hoppers Crossing and Werribee South.

As a result, four people were interviewed in relation to various serious drug offences, with the total value of all items seized estimated at $50,000.

A 45-year-old Werribee South woman was charged with trafficking, cultivating and possessing a drug of dependence. She was bailed to appear in the Werribee Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 8 August.

Three Hoppers Crossing residents, a 25-year-old woman, a 52-year-old man and a 47-year-old man, received official police cautions after being detected with small amounts of cannabis.

The Werribee South address contained three rooms which had been converted into a sophisticated hydroponic set-up.

Police said the arrests should send a clear message to people that drug-related crime would not be tolerated.

Star News Group

 

[lil angel15]

Principal jailed
MALCOLM WEATHERUP
11Jul07

A MAN named as a principal behind the million-dollar interstate drug smuggling ring which brought huge amounts of marijuana to Charters Towers from Adelaide has been jailed for six years.

Jeffrey James Jellese, 55, of Adelaide, was the second last person to be dealt with from the interstate drug ring smashed by a Queensland/South Australian taskforce during Operation Delta Ape over a two-year period which ended in 2005.

Several of those involved in the operation are either behind bars or have already completed jail time for their roles in the multi-million dollar scheme.

Jellese pleaded guilty to a charge of trafficking in a dangerous drug just minutes before his trial for drug running was about to start in the Supreme Court in Townsvilleyesterday.

Crown prosecutor Viviana Keegan said Jellese was a pivotal figure in the smuggling racket, providing the cannabis from his Adelaide base for road transport by drug couriers to Charters Towers.

When the shipments reached Charters Towers, the man previously named as the Queensland kingpin of the racket, dealer Wayne Williams, would buy the drugs or direct them on to contacts in Townsville.

The money, as much as $78,000 a trip, was stored in locked tool boxes in the vehicles, and returned to Jellese in Adelaide when the couriers returned.

Ms Keegan said the extent of the operation was shown by the movements of just one drug courier _ who made 10 to 15 trips _ carrying shipments varying between about 7kg and 11kg, respectively worth $45,000 and $75,000.

"Jellese was the supplier and the financier of the venture and received most of the proceeds," Ms Keegan said.

The prosecutor called for a seven-year head sentence.

However, Justice Kerry Cullinane agreed with defence barrister Roger Griffith that Jellese should be treated the same as Wayne Williams, who is serving six years for his role.

Mr Griffith argued that Williams did not work for Jellese and bought the drugs outright and became an independent dealer by doing so. In that way, the two men should receive similar sentences, because the criminality of one was not greater than the other.

Mr Griffith also argued that Jellese came before the court with little criminal history and late in life.

Justice Cullinane commented that it was a trend he noted in his court that older people with no history were appearing before him on drugs charges.

Justice Cullinane ruled that he did not see why he should distinguish more or less criminality between Williams and Jellese, seeing them as equal principals in the operation.

He jailed Jellese for six years, directing that he be eligible for parole in December, 2009.

Townsville Bulletin

 

[lil angel15]

AFP seizes cocaine in Melbourne
July 11, 2007 - 3:09PM

Three men have been charged in Melbourne over the importation of 12 kg of cocaine, after a joint operation by Australian and overseas law enforcement agencies.

A 35-year-old man from suburban Meadow Heights and a 51-year-old man from Endeavour Hills were arrested on Tuesday after premises were searched in St Kilda, Tullamarine, Hawthorn, Dandenong and Endeavour Hills, the Australian Federal Police said.

A 41-year-old man from Hawthorn was also arrested late on Tuesday in suburban Carlton.

The arrests follow a six-month joint police investigation spanning six countries and involving law enforcement agencies in South America, the United States and the Pacific region, into the alleged importation of cocaine to Australia.

Almost 12 kg of cocaine was seized during the operation, the AFP said.

The 41-year-old man was charged with three counts of conspiracy to import a marketable quantity of a border-controlled drug, three counts of conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug and one count of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring the import of a marketable quantity of a border controlled drug.

The 51-year-old man was charged with two counts of conspiracy to import a marketable quantity of a border-controlled drug and one count of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring the import of a marketable quantity of a border-controlled drug.

The 35-year-old man was charged with one count of attempting to possess a controlled drug, namely cocaine.

The three are due to appear in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court.

SMH

 

[hoptis]

Drugs made to beat lethargy
Amanda Watt
July 11, 2007 12:00am

TOO hot to handle ... Anthony Johnson, left, and the fire-damaged stove in his flat.

ANTHONY James Johnson was a mature man with no criminal history, but a desire to beat lethargy led him to turn to the criminal world of drug production.

But it was his ignorance of drug production which brought him unstuck when the oven in his Gold Coast apartment caught fire.

Fire officers arrived at the smoking Surfers Paradise home in June 2005 to find an unsophisticated set-up containing 13.5g of pseudoephedrine.

It is believed he found instructions on how to make the drugs on the internet.

A quantity of white powder – containing 0.007g of pure-weight methamphetamine – was also found.

Johnson, now 64, pleaded guilty in Brisbane Supreme Court yesterday to one count of unlawful production of pseudoephedrine, possession of methamphetamine and possessing documents and items related to drug production.

He was sentenced to 12 months' probation – a community-based order that involves strict supervision and reporting conditions.

In his sentencing remarks yesterday, Justice John Byrne said Johnson began taking Sudafed at the suggestion of an acquaintance after medication he was taking for epilepsy made him drowsy.

However, when access to Sudafed became restricted by authorities, Johnson turned to the idea of producing pseudeophedrine.

He described the white powder found on the day as being held for personal use as a stimulant.

Justice Byrne told Johnson his pleas of guilty – which had saved the community time and money prosecuting the matter – went to his favour.

However, he said methamphetamine had been correctly described as a "scourge" on the community and the court had to impose a penalty that would deter not only Johnson, but other would-be offenders.

Convictions were recorded.

Courier Mail

 

[hoptis]

Drug pair guilty
July 11, 2007 12:00am

TWO former nightclub workers were yesterday convicted of importing drugs.

John Anthony Giannarelli, 44, who once worked at the Heat nightclub, pleaded guilty in the County Court to importing a commercial quantity of drugs.

The court heard he tried to import 34,310 pseudoephedrine tablets from Malaysia in January last year, with an estimated street value of $171,500.

His co-accused Jon Vestic, 41, pleaded guilty to aiding, abetting or procuring a marketable quantity of drugs.

The court was told Vestic tried to import 16,923 pills.

Judge Fred Davey accepted evidence that Giannarelli had mesothelioma and was terminally ill, and imposed a suspended sentence of three years and a $55,000 fine. Vestic was sentenced to 12 months in prison with a non-parole period of six months.

Herald Sun

 

[lil angel15]

News: The Daily Telegraph - 12/7/07 'Air hostess found guilty of cocaine smuggling'

Air hostess found guilty of cocaine smuggling
July 12, 2007 01:00am

WHEN former Qantas hostess Suellen Cryer was busted with two bags of cocaine stuffed in her bra at Sydney airport, she claimed she smuggled the drugs to feed her addiction.

But yesterday a jury rejected her story and took less than three hours to find the mother-of-two guilty of importing a marketable quantity of cocaine.

Cryer, 54, admitted importing 136g of cocaine but pleaded not guilty - claiming she had been persuaded to bring home drugs by her supplier in LA so she could use it during her five-week holiday.

A self-confessed drug addict, Cryer said she had no intention of selling the drugs or any knowledge that anyone else intended to sell them.

But the jury heard drug dealing paraphernalia was found at the Bexley home Cryer shares with her youngest daughter and her husband.

Crown Prosecutor Matthew Bracks accused Cryer of drug dealing to bankroll a serious poker machine habit.

She was arrested at Sydney airport on March 13 last year when traces of cocaine were detected on her belongings.

Cryer protested her innocence but admitted to having two sausage-shaped bags of cocaine stuffed inside her bra when it became obvious she was to be searched.

The cocaine was found to be about 60 per cent pure - about twice the usual strength of street cocaine.

Police later searched her home where they found more high-grade cocaine, a box that had contained scales and supplies of resealable bags.

In Cryer's bedroom police found glucodin powder - which can be used to dilute cocaine - and three bags of the drug.

Giving evidence at her District Court trial, softly spoken Cryer identified one bag allegedly containing 7.2g of cocaine.

She claimed to have bought it from a fellow poker machine player called Sam at St George Leagues Club and admitted sticking a label to the bag which read: "Hope and David's wedding".

Crown Prosecutor Matthew Bracks asked Cryer if she had taken cocaine to the ceremony and sold it or distributed it.

But Cryer stated the bag had contained emergency safety and bobby pins on her eldest daughter Hope's wedding day a month before she was arrested.

Mr Bracks accused Cryer of putting on an act in court and accused her of lying about her daily use of the drug in order to claim the 136g haul was for personal use.

The jury rejected her claim that she was "lucky" on poker machines and used her winnings to pay for cocaine which she took to self-medicate for serious depression due to family problems.

Cryer was remanded and is to be sentenced at Parramatta Court on October 5.

news.com.au

 

[lil angel15]

Taser gun, drugs found
July 12, 2007 05:13pm

A MAN has been charged with possessing a Taser stun gun and his teenage companion will face court over an alleged drug stash after police searched their car in Sydney's southwest.

Police pulled over the car in Mt Annan Drive, Mt Annan, just after 8pm (AEST) yesterday.

The driver, a 21-year-old Mt Annan man, was charged with possessing a prohibited weapon after police discovered a Taser gun.

An 18-year-old female passenger, of Bradbury, was charged with possessing a large quantity of prohibited drugs, believed to be ecstasy tablets and liquid fantasy, police said.

She was refused bail and ordered to appear before Campbelltown Local Court today.

Police said they also raided a property in Bradbury and seized prohibited drugs worth an estimated $10,000.

The man is expected to face the same court on September 2.

Herald Sun

 

[lil angel15]

16kg of crystal meth posted to Sydney hotel
July 12, 2007 02:26pm

A CANADIAN man has been arrested after 16kg of the party drug ice was allegedly delivered to a Sydney hotel.

The 28-year-old faces a maximum penalty of life in jail after the crystal methamphetamine was found in two packages sent from Canada.

The air cargo packages, addressed to a CBD hotel and ostensibly containing crystal dinnerware, were intercepted in Sydney last Sunday.

A total of 16 kg of the drug was seized.

The man was arrested by Australian Federal Police after he allegedly attempted to take delivery of the packages.

He was charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug and was to face Sydney's Central Local Court today.

Courier Mail

 

[Splatt]

More information can be found on the NSW Customs Media Unit on this ^

 

[Splatt]

Sydney airport drug arrest - Friday, 13rd July 2007
Joint media release - Australian Customs and the Australian Federal Police

A 35-year-old British national is expected to appear in Sydney Central Local Court this
morning charged with importing almost 300 grams of cocaine into Australia.

Customs officers selected the man for a baggage examination when he arrived on a
flight from Bangkok at Sydney International Airport on Wednesday 11 July.

Customs officers became suspicious the man could be carrying drugs in his stomach.

The man was referred to the AFP and was taken to hospital for a medical examination.

It will be alleged in court the man had swallowed 108 pellets, each containing almost
three grams of a powder, prior to arriving in Australia.

Preliminary testing of the powder indicated the presence of cocaine.

The AFP charged the man with importing a marketable quantity of a controlled drug
contrary to section 307.2(1) of the Commonwealth Criminal Code Act 1995.

The maximum penalty for this offence is 25 years imprisonment and/or a $550,000 fine.

Customs Media Unit

 

[lil angel15]

Convicted drug trafficker's 'excessive' sentence cut

The Queensland Court of Appeal has cut five years off the sentence of a man who imported $1 million worth of heroin into Australia, hidden inside jars of fish.

Sydney man Anh Kiet Tran, 41, pleaded guilty to importing a marketable quantity of heroin in the Brisbane Supreme Court in December last year.

He was sentenced to 15 years in prison but today the court of appeal ruled that penalty was excessive.

He will serve a 10 year prison term with parole after five years.

ABC Online

 

[lil angel15]

Four charged over $35m cocaine bust
July 13, 2007 - 6:59PM

Four men have been charged with importing cocaine worth as much as $35 million into Australia inside flower pots.

The men, aged between 31 and 39, are accused of concealing 35kg of the drug inside 21 flower pots that arrived at Port Botany from Mexico in March.

The drugs were detected after a shipment of 946 boxes of pots was selected for x-ray by Australian Customs Service officers.

Australian Federal Police (AFP) removed the drugs and substituted a fake substance, then monitored the shipment for more than three months.

Caeser Taborda Martinez and Freddy Hurtado-Gonzales, both aged 34, and Xavier Devila, 31, all from Rockdale, were arrested after allegedly trying to access the shipment at a storage facility in Rosebery.

Alexander Osorio Ospina, 39, from Kensington, was arrested at Five Dock shortly before 1am (AEST) on Friday.

AFP National Manager Border Operations Rudi Lammers said the street value of the drugs could be as high as $35 million depending on the purity.

Customs acting National Manager Cargo Operations, Karen Williams, said a large quantity of cocaine had been stopped from reaching the streets.

All four men have been charged with conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug and attempting to possess a border controlled drug.

Magistrate Allan Moore refused all four bail in Central Local Court, remanding them in custody to face the same court on July 25.

The maximum possible penalty is life imprisonment.

The AGE

 

[Splatt]

Outlaw Motorcycle Gang Member Arrested on Drug Offences – Tweed Heads
13 July 2007

A man, alleged to be a senior outlaw motorcycle gang member, will appear in court later this month after drugs were seized in the state’s north.

At 3.30pm yesterday highway patrol police stopped a BMW that was travelling on the Tweed Valley Way at Tumbulgum for traffic offences

The driver, a 27-year old man, was arrested and searched. It will be alleged the search uncovered a quantity of drugs believed to be methylamphetamine.

He has been charged with supplying a prohibited drug, possessing a prohibited drug, supplying a prohibited drug, not produce license and not keep left of dividing lines. The 27-year-old man appeared in Tweed Heads Local Court today and has been released on conditional bail to re-appear at Tweed Heads Local Court on the 23 July.

NSW Police Media Unit


Funny how they don't mention which gang, scared much cops?

 

[lil angel15]

Police raid bikie clubhouse

POLICE have raided a heavily fortified Rebels bikie gang clubhouse at Batemans Bay on the New South Wales south coast.

It's the third police raid in two days on an outlaw motorcycle gang clubhouse.

Police executed a search warrant at 3.30pm (AEST) yesterday at the Rebels south coast chapter headquarters as part of Operation Ranmore, the statewide crackdown on bikie gangs, which began in May.

During the raid officers seized a quantity of alcohol, drug paraphernalia, a number of prohibited weapons, including a dagger, and a sum of cash.

Police say inquiries are continuing into several Rebels members, and it's expected they will be charged with a number of offences.

The raid was conducted by the Far South Coast Target Action Group and Licensing Police, with the assistance of State Crime Commands Gangs Squad.

The Far South Coast Local Area Commander, Superintendent Wayne Starling, said inquiries have revealed the clubhouse was operating illegally as an unlicensed premise, with alcohol allegedly sold to members of the public on several occasions.

The raid on the Rebels clubhouse is the third in two days following similar police raids on Hells Angels' premises.

On Friday night, Gangs Squad detectives executed warrants on premises in the Sydney suburbs of Guildford and Petersham, arresting five men and seizing quantities of alcohol, drugs, a number of weapons and a sum of cash.

news.com.au

 

[hoptis]

Drug bust nets five
July 20, 2007 09:33am

VICTORIAN police have arrested five men and seized a undisclosed quantity of the drug ice during raids in Melbourne.

Police searched five premises in Werribee and Braybrook, in Melbourne's west, yesterday as part of the operation which began February this year, Victoria Police said.

"Detectives from the Werribee CIU and the Footscray uniform police took part in the raids," Senior Constable Wayne Wilson said.

"The operation was aimed at distributors in the western suburbs and the arrests would have an impact on drug distribution in the area," Snr Const Wilson said.

Police said the five men have been charged with various drug offences.

Three of the men have been remanded in custody and are expected to face the Melbourne Magistrates court later today.

The two other men have been released on bail and were expected to face court at a later date.

Herald Sun

 

[lil angel15]

Mum and sons charged
July 19, 2007 02:50pm

AN Adelaide woman and her two adult sons have been arrested for drug possession following a police raid on the family's southern suburbs house.

A stash of 1,700 white tablets and $9,000 cash was found at the Dover Garden house about 1.30pm yesterday, police said.

Detective Inspector John McCaffrey today said police believed the tablets were ecstasy but forensic testing had yet to be completed.

Half of the tablets were found in the s-bend of a toilet.

They were wrapped in plastic bags but many of them were discoloured and water damaged, he said.

Det Insp McCaffrey said the two men, aged 18 and 23, would front Adelaide Magistrates Court later today each charged with possession of a drug of dependence and unlawful possession.

Their 45-year-old mother was bailed to appear in court next month on the same charges.

"We will allege the three of them worked together, and they have been charged jointly with this joint enterprise," Detective Insp McCaffrey told reporters.

"It is a significant seizure - it is what we would expect a street dealer to have."

Det Insp McCaffrey said police were called to the house after a witness reported seeing a pistol, which was later found to be a replica.

He refused to say whether the family was linked to a bikie gang but said police were making further inquiries.

Adelaide Now

 

[lil angel15]

Bikie gang leader, six others arrested in raid
July 19, 2007 02:33pm

THE president of the Lone Wolf bikie gang is among seven men arrested during a series of drug raids in Sydney and northern NSW.

The 46-year-old president was one of three Lone Wolf bikies arrested in Lismore and four members taken into custody in Sydney today, police said.

Drugs and numerous weapons including knives, swords and a revolver, cash and an illicit drug lab were seized during the raids.

Gang squad commander Detective Superintendent Scott Whyte said police seized about 2,000 ecstasy tablets during their investigation, which began in March last year.

Police allege a further 4,000 tablets were supplied during this time.

Supt Whyte said Lone Wolf bikies in Sydney allegedly made the drugs for distribution by gang members in Lismore.

Supt Whyte said the arrests would severely affect the supply of ecstasy and amphetamines in northern NSW.

"The persons arrested are members or associates of the Lone Wolf outlaw motorcycle gang, both in the Lismore chapter and one of the Sydney chapters,'' he said.

"This operation has had a major impact on the supply of amphetamines in the Lismore and northern rivers area.''

The Lone Wolf bikie gang is one of the smaller groups in NSW, with six chapters spread across the state and up to 150 members.

In a statement, police said more than 100 police were involved in the raids, which followed a joint investigation by officers from the Richmond Local Area Command and the gangs squad.

They said the operation began in May last year, with Richmond Local Area Commands Drug Unit launching Strike Force Tungarra, which targeted the supply of amphetamines and ecstasy by the Lone Wolf Lismore chapter.

"At 7am, State Protection Group (SPG) officers arrested a 46-year-old highly ranked Lone Wolf member during a raid at a remote farmhouse, located about 40 kilometres south of Lismore,'' the statement said.

"Teams of Operational Support Group (OSG) officers then stormed the Lone Wolf clubhouse in Terania Street, and raided a heavily fortified alleged drug house in Uralba Street, Lismore.

"A 48-year-old senior Lone Wolf member was arrested at the clubhouse and a 35-year-old gang member was arrested at the alleged drug house.

"The three Lismore Lone Wolf bikies have been taken to Lismore police station where they will be charged with numerous drug offences including large commercial supply of ecstasy, commercial supply of amphetamine and ongoing supply of as well as drug house offences.''

The three were expected to appear at Lismore Local Court today, police said.

News.com.au

 

[lil angel15]

Man in court over $3.2m cannabis seizures
Angela Cuming
July 22, 2007

A MAN appeared in court yesterday charged over a multimillion-dollar cannabis crop.

Van Son Tran, 36, of Lansvale, faced Parramatta Local Court on a string of drugs charges, including cultivating cannabis.

The charges follow a police operation that spanned three years and which involved raids on several houses in Sydney's south-west.

Cannabis plants worth $3.24million were allegedly seized during the operation.

Tran was described in court by police as a "key figure in an organised criminal syndication".

The latest raid occurred on March 6 on two houses.

In a property at Fairfield, police allegedly found two rooms and a garage filled with 143 cannabis plants, with a total estimated street value of $625,000. Lights, heaters and a watering system were also seized.

At a Bonnyrigg property, a police raid allegedly netted 60 cannabis plants worth $300,000.

The court was told Tran was also charged in relation to a 2005 raid on a house in Bankstown, where police seized cannabis plants worth $1.56million, and a 2006 raid on a house in Cabramatta, where cannabis plants worth $750,000 were found.

Tran denied all knowledge of the crimes. He was refused bail.

SMH

 

[hoptis]

Gran 'used girl' to carry drugs
Article from: Sunday Mail (SA)
July 22, 2007 12:15am

A PROSPECT woman, who allegedly used her seven-year-old granddaughter to smuggle drugs into Mobilong Prison, is one of the first people charged by a new police unit.

Police Corrections Section detectives have charged the woman, 44, with two offences.

The Department for Families and Communities has also investigated the custody of the child, who lives with her grandmother, and is "satisfied that the child is safe".

The woman will appear in Murray Bridge Magistrates Court next month charged with possessing a prohibited substance and introducing a prohibited item to a correctional facility.

The charges relate to her attendance at Mobilong Prison on July 11 when the woman visited her son, 26, who is serving a sentence for theft offences, with her granddaughter.

During the visit, the prisoner slipped his hand into his daughter's pocket and retrieved a small package that contained 26 Xanax tablets.

He was later caught in his cell regurgitating the package and subsequent inquiries by PCS detectives resulted in the woman's Prospect house being searched and her arrest.

Correctional Services Intelligence and Investigation Unit manager Darrell Smedley said the use of children to smuggle drugs did not surprise him.

"Nothing surprises me in relation to what prisoners or visitors will resort to in order to get drugs in," he said.

"We have had standover tactics where prisonerscoerce people on the outside to bring drugs in. They also tug on the heartstrings of family members – parents, grandparents and older children – about what is going to happen to them if they don't bring these items in.

"Most of the time they are telling lies because it is only for their own benefit".

Mr Smedley said the arrest of the woman was a result of information provided to the PCS by Corrections intelligence officers and was "a clear example" of how the new partnership will work.

It is one of four major arrests since the PCS commenced operations on July 1.

The others were another attempt to smuggle drugs into a prison, the arrest of a man on an outstanding parole warrant – who was caught with a loaded firearm – and the arrest of another man who attempted to enter a prison using false identification, who also had several outstanding parole warrants.

The PCS, which consists of five detectives and two intelligence analysts, is working closely with the Correctional Services Intelligence and Investigations Unit examining incidents ranging from deaths in custody to drug activity within prisons. PCS officer-in-charge Detective Sergeant Derek Wright said the new unit would also provide almost "real time" intelligence for other areas of SAPOL.

"We have identified that much of our effort has involved putting people into custody and then they come out at the other end," he said.

"What we aim now to do is fill that gap so that there is a higher degree of monitoring by us as to what they are doing while they are in custody, who they are associating with and their behaviour while in custody – all towards predicting what they might do when they get out.

"Part of that is aimed at our volume crime recidivist offenders who go in for what might be a short period, then come and out do harm.

"From this we want to profile them and predict what they might do."

He acknowledged the concentration of offenders within prisons was a "goldmine " of intelligence for police that would now be fully exploited.

Mr Smedley said while his unit had been actively obtaining intelligence from within the prison population and passing it to police, there had often been a "lag" time before it was acted upon.

"PCS is a robust unit and has the capacity to be able to respond almost immediately," he said.

Besides developing "targets" within the prisons suspected of being involved in illegal activity, the PCS would have a role in managing prisoners to ensure they are not housed with known associates, such as gang members.

"That will also serve to disrupt their activity while they are inside the prison system," Sgt Wright said.

The Advertiser

 

[lil angel15]

Drug mule 'a fool' in drug ring: court
July 23, 2007 - 6:24PM

A self-confessed drug mule would have been "a fool" to accept only $500 for his role in a million dollar interstate drug ring, a Northern Territory court heard on Monday.

Robert McKay, 38, of Darwin, has pleaded guilty to two charges of possession and supply of cannabis in the NT Supreme Court in Darwin.

In one of the largest drug hauls in the territory's history, police arrested five people, netted kilograms of cannabis, commercial quantities of methylamphetamine and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash in January.

An 11-day sting followed a four-week investigation, including phone taps, into the alleged operation between Darwin and Adelaide.

McKay was with 45-year-old Adelaide man Dewayne Stehbens when they were stopped by a police in a Darwin-bound road train at Noonamah on January 7.

A police search of the vehicle allegedly uncovered more than 4.5 kg of cannabis, ecstasy, speed and cash.

Police prosecutor Tony Elliott told the court there were recorded phone conversations between McKay and the alleged ringleader in which they referred to drug shipments as pallets.

He called the operation "regular and ongoing".

"Although he was doing more than a mule might do, he is being paid as a mule," he said of the alleged $500 payment McKay received for transporting the goods to Darwin.

Justice Trevor Riley asked: "It seems extraordinary that he would involve himself in criminal conduct to that extent and then receive such a nominal amount when you compare it to the value that has been transported?"

Mr Elliott said: "I endorse the proposition that a man would have to be a fool to do it for $500 given the amounts of cannabis involved and the potential profit."

Mr Elliott said it was a "a serious operation" which warranted a serious sentence.

"The offender McKay was an integral part of this serious operation, without him the operation could not have survived and although he was not as high up as the leader, he is nonetheless deserving of a substantial punishment."

Defence lawyer Michael Powell said his client had not assisted police with their investigation because he was concerned for his own welfare and had received threats about his girlfriend and mother.

Justice Riley adjourned the matter until Tuesday morning, when the crown will challenge a number of defence assertions.

Stehbens has already been ordered to serve a two-month suspended sentence while the alleged ringleader, who cannot be named and lives in Darwin, faces seven drug-related charges and will face a five-day trial on October 25.

The two other men will face court at a later date.

Brisbane Times