Police say they have put a major dent in a Lismore-based drug supply syndicate.
Officers seized drugs with an estimated street value of $200,000 after stopping a car on the Pacific Highway at Cudgera Creek yesterday.
A 35-year-old Caniaba man and a 42-year-old man from Robina on the Gold Coast were arrested and are due to appear in the Tweed Heads Local Court today.
Detective Inspector Greg Moore says the bust was part of Operation Spice, which was set up to investigate the supply of crystal methamphetamine and cocaine in the Northern Rivers.
"The police attached to the Lismore Drug Unit also executed a search warrant at a Lismore property and as a result of that search located further quantities of methylamphetamine and 74 cannabis plants, along with cannabis resin and OxyContin tablets," he said.
Nigerian man charged over 1.8kgs of cocaine in floorboards
A Nigerian national has been charged by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) with attempting to possess 1.8kgs of cocaine to be delivered through the post.
On 26 July 2011, members of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) intercepted a package from Bolivia addressed to the southern Sydney suburb of Kogarah.
After an examination of the package containing wooden floorboards, a US Customs officer noticed anomalies within the floorboards and removed a concealment of a powder believed to be cocaine.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) received information from United States ICE on 28 July 2011 and commenced an investigation into the matter.
On 1 August, the AFP conducted a controlled delivery to identify the recipients of the cocaine.
On 2 August, AFP officers arrested a 35-year-old man and conducted a search on the vehicle he was driving, seizing the consignment, mobile phones, a GPS unit and approximately three grams of a powder thought to be cocaine.
It will be alleged in court the man attempted to take possession of the package he believed to contain the cocaine by using a fake identity.
The man was charged with:
Attempt to possess a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug, namely cocaine, contrary to section 307.6 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 by virtue of section 11.
He is scheduled to appear in the Sydney Central Local court today.
The maximum penalty for this offence is a $825,000 fine and/or life imprisonment.
Two men charged with large commercial drug supply - Surry Hills
Two men will face court today charged with supplying a commercial quantity of drugs in the city’s east.
Strike Force Topp, comprising investigators from the Surry Hills Region Enforcement Squad, was established to investigate the supply of cocaine in the Eastern Suburbs.
Following lengthy investigations, officers yesterday arrested two men aged 22 and 33, in a vehicle near Hyde Park about 1.30pm.
A search of the vehicle allegedly located 1.75kg of powder, believed to be cocaine.
The two men were taken to Surry Hills Police Station where the 22-year-old Rockdale man was charged with supply large commercial quantity of drug.
The 33-year-old was released without charge.
Another man, aged 52, was arrested about 4pm in Stanley Street, East Sydney. He was taken to Surry Hills Police Station where a search warrant was applied for and granted.
The man’s Pitt Street unit was subsequently searched by police who allegedly located an amount of powder believed to be cocaine, and $21,500 in cash.
He was also charged with supplying a large commercial quantity of drug.
Both men were refused bail and will appear in Central Local Court today.
Detectives arrest man, seize chemicals to make $12.5million crystal methamphetamine
Police have put a major dent in a Sydney-based drug supply syndicate - arresting one man and seizing enough chemicals to manufacture ‘Ice’ worth more than $12.5million.
Detectives attached to the Middle Eastern Organised Crime Squad (MEOCS) - investigating the manufacture and supply of crystal methamphetamine or ‘Ice’ across the Sydney metropolitan area - stopped a vehicle near Phegans Bay, on the state’s Central Coast, yesterday afternoon (Tuesday 2 August 2011).
A search of the vehicle allegedly uncovered approximately 25 litres of ‘meth oil’.
The driver, a 73-year-old man, was arrested and taken to Gosford Police Station, where he was questioned by investigators.
He was subsequently charged with supply large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug (two counts) and possess unregistered firearm (two counts) before being refused bail to appear in Gosford Local Court today (Wednesday 3 August 2011).
Investigators also executed a search warrant at a Phegans Bay property, and seized another 25 litres of meth oil, as well as two firearms and ammunition.
The 50 litres of oil could have been converted into 50kg of crystal methamphetamine or ice with an estimated potential street value of at least $12.5 million.
A second search warrant was executed on the man’s residence at Mosman, on Sydney’s lower north shore. Police allegedly seized documentation and other items relevant to their inquiries.
Investigations by MEOCS are continuing and further arrests have not been ruled out.
Robbery/drug arrests as Operation Seymour continues
Police arrested 16 people on 31 charges during the third night of Operation Seymour – a month-long 50-officer uniform taskforce aimed at blitzing criminal and anti-social activity on the Gold Coast.
This brings the combined total for the three nights of Operation Seymour to 80 people arrested on 131 charges.
About 12.30am, police intercepted a vehicle in Frank Street, Labrador and allegedly located an assortment of drugs and drug paraphernalia in the vehicle.
A 29-year- old man from Shailer Park has been charged with five counts of possess a dangerous drug, possession of property suspected of being stolen, possession of drug utensils, possession of drug things and possession of a thing used in relation to drugs.
The man has also been charged with wilful exposure in relation to an alleged incident at Shailer Park on July 11 this year. He is due to face Southport Magistrates Court today.
South Eastern Region Assistant Commissioner Paul Wilson said such arrests demonstrated how targeting minor offences could lead to solving other incidents.
“Here we have a traffic interception that has now resulted in a man being charged in relation to numerous drug offences and also a previous crime. This is the basis of Operation Seymour – proactively targeting everyday offences which can lead to the detection and solving of major crime,” Assistant Commissioner Wilson said.
Also overnight, police have charged an 18-year-old man with two robbery with violence offences. This relates to the alleged assault and robbery of a female on Maddocks Road at Varsity Lakes on July 29 and the robbery of a taxi driver at Benowa on July 2. Police also charged a second man, aged 17, in relation to the alleged robbery of the taxi driver at Benowa.
“As part of Operation Seymour, police conducted 140 random breath tests and 151 street checks overnight,” Assistant Commissioner Wilson said.
“They also did 205 stop robs in which officers proactively attend businesses and talk to staff about personal safety.”
Assistant Commissioner Wilson added the overnight results did not take into account the work of local police whose combined results for the three nights in Gold Coast and Coomera police districts were the arrests of 217 people on 267 charges.
The drug baron who owned $440,000 worth of luxury cars while on the dole has been ordered to sell his million-dollar home.
Ronald Terrence Brown made his money importing Ecstasy, LSD and methamphetamine through a sophisticated network.
He's admitted making $4.5 million from his drug syndicate and has already had nearly $900,000 cash, $60,000 worth of jewellery and his six cars confiscated by authorities.
The Solicitor General also applied to make Brown pay a "pecuniary penalty" of half the value of his family's home in Auckland.
The 66-year-old is serving a jail term of 11 years and has a half-share of the property with his brother, but the house is likely to go on the market.
Justice Mark Woolford issued a judgment in the case yesterday. He has given the Brown family a chance to buy the convict's share in the home in the harbourside suburb of Westmere by paying the Crown $600,000.
If they cannot do that, the Official Assignee will sell the property, half of which will go to the Crown once the $78,000 mortgage is paid.
Brown's lawyer David Reece had argued the sale of his client's home would leave him destitute when he was eventually released from prison.
But Crown prosecutor Robin McCoubrey said if the home was not sold, it would amount to a "misplaced mercy".
Justice Woolford said the sale of the property was a "proportionate response" to Brown's $4.5 million drug offending.
Brown's arrest followed a five-month police investigation which began in 2008 when Australian authorities intercepted a container from Lithuania holding a large granite sculpture with 28kg of methamphetamine hidden inside.
Police who work in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands successfully intercepted a car last night and seized cannabis, cash and alcohol which police will allege were destined for distribution throughout the Lands.
A far north patrol based at Ernabella within the Lands stopped the car at Umuwa which was en-route to Fregon.
Drugs and cash seized in APY Lands
Inside the vehicle they discovered 184 grams of cannabis packed into six glad resealable bags, numerous deal bags and $2,760.00 in $20.00 notes.
They also found a quantity of alcohol. As a result three men were arrested, two from Wingellina in Western Australia and the third from Alice Springs.
All have been charged with traffic in cannabis, unlawful possession and possess alcohol on the APY Lands.
Bail has been refused.
The seizure is significant in terms of the risks and dangers these substances pose to the Aboriginal communities on the Lands and is a further reminder that illicit drugs and alcohol are prohibited and police are actively working in these areas to prevent their distribution.
Investigators from Moorabbin Divisional Response Unit have arrested a man after executing three drug warrants this morning.
Police conducted searches at addresses in Vernon Court and Jeffrey Avenue, Noble Park and in Koonalda Grove, Dandenong North, and allegedly discovered hydroponic set-ups.
Police seized cannabis and other equipment during the searches.
A 40-year-old man from Noble Park has been charged with cultivating a commercial quantity of cannabis.
He will appear before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court this afternoon.
While conducting the searches in Noble Park police, were alerted to a house fire in Springvale.
Police discovered the house was also allegedly being used for cultivating cannabis.
Investigators have not rules out a link between the incidents.
Senior Sergeant Shane RIX said today’s arrest was linked to a previous operation, which resulted in stolen property being seized by police some weeks earlier.
“The arrest and seizure was an excellent result and shows the strong correlation between illicit drugs and property crime,” he said.
“Victoria Polices continues to focus on reducing harm caused by illicit drugs in the community through identifying and disrupting these types of drug syndicates."
Three people have been charged after several warrants were executed last night in Tullamarine and Attwood by members of the Drug Taskforce and Mornington police.
A 35-year-old Tullamarine man, a 34-year-old Attwood man and a 34-year-old St Albans man were all charged with traffick large commercial quantity methylamphetamine and other drug related offences.
A 30-year-old Attwood woman was released without charge.
The warrants were executed at the Carol Grove, Tullamarine and Trumpington Terrace, Attwood addresses from around 6.30pm last night.
Items seized by police during the raids included drugs, cash, firearms, ammunition, a quad bike and a jet-ski.
The three men faced an out of sessions hearing last night and were remanded in custody to face Melbourne Magistrates Court this morning.
Fugitive extradited from Thailand over ecstasy ring
Australian fugitive Adam Freeman has been extradited from Thailand to Sydney over an alleged multi-million-dollar drug ring.
The 28-year-old son of former Kings Cross identity George Freeman handed himself in at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok in June.
He arrived at Sydney Airport about 6:00am (AEST) today and was taken to the Sydney Police Centre at Surry Hills to be charged with large-scale drug manufacturing offences.
Police say he is the sixth man charged by detectives attached to Strike Force Harrower.
The operation began after police seized nearly 20 kilograms of ecstasy and drug paraphernalia from a car at Quirindi, near Tamworth in the north-west of New South Wales, in December last year.
The drugs had an estimated street value of more than $3 million.
Two men in the car, both 27, were charged.
Three other men, one 26-year-old and two 34-year-olds, have been charged after subsequent police raids.
Detectives say the operation is continuing.
Freeman is expected to face court for the first time later today.
Police have arrested two men for drug offences after stopping a vehicle in Ottoway on Wednesday 3 August 2011.
It's alleged that approximately 22 grams of heroin and $2,565.00 cash were located in the vehicle.
Police later searched an Ottoway house allegedly locating 14 grams of heroin and a Mansfield Park home locating 5 grams of heroin and 2 grams of methamphetamine.
A 38-year-old Mansfield Park man appeared in the Port Adelaide Magistrates Court yesterday and was remanded.
A 43-year-old man from Ottoway will appear court at a later date.
Three people are in hospital with serious burns after an explosion at a suspected clandestine drug laboratory in Perth's northern suburbs.
Neighbours say they heard a large explosion, saw flames and then heard people screaming at a home on Rochester Circle in Balga, just after two o'clock this morning.
A 34-year-old man is in a critical condition in Royal Perth hospital with extensive burns to his body.
A 37-year-old man and a 43-year-old woman are in a stable condition with serious burns.
Ros Weatherall from Police Media says officers from the organised crime squad are at the scene.
Inside the house were items associated with the manufacture of methylamphetamine.
She says police want to speak with a number of people who were seen running from the home and driving away after the explosion.
Fire authorities say it appears the fire was caused by a gas bottle rupturing or an accumulation of gas inside the house.
Three men arrested, charged after $228,000 cannabis seized - Jerrabomberra
Three men will face court today after police allegedly seized cannabis worth more than $225,000 at Jerrabomberra, in the state’s south-west.
As a result of a joint investigation between NSW and ACT Policing, a search warrant was executed at a house on Maple Crescent, Jerrabomberra, yesterday afternoon (Saturday 6 August 2011).
Detectives from Monaro Local Area Command and Criminal Investigations (ACT Policing) seized 45 mature cannabis plants and more than three kilograms of cannabis leaf.
The cannabis plants and leaves have an estimated potential street value of more than $228,000.
Three men were arrested at the house and were taken to Queanbeyan Police Station.
A 25-year old MacGregor (ACT) man was charged with knowingly take part in the enhanced indoor cultivation of cannabis for commercial purpose, possess prohibited plant, supply drug, possess drug, and deal with proceeds of crime.
A 21-year-old McKellar (ACT) man was charged with knowingly take part in the enhanced indoor cultivation of cannabis for commercial purpose, and deal with proceeds of crime.
A 26-year-old Jerrabomberra man was charged with knowingly take part in the enhanced indoor cultivation of cannabis for commercial purpose, supply drug, and possess drug.
All three men have been refused bail and are due to appear in Queanbeyan Local Court today (Sunday 7 August 2011).
Three officers were exposed to chemicals following the discovery of a clandestine drug laboratory at a Bracken Ridge residence last night.
Officers attended a Greenore Street house following reports of a trespasser. Police entered the house and located a man inside. He fled on foot smashing a glass receptacle containing chemicals which had been sitting on a bench during his escape.
Upon closer examination of the house police located an inactive clandestine laboratory. Members of the Ilit Team attended the address and removed the chemicals.
The three officers were assessed at the scene with examinations revealing they had not sustained any chemical related injuries.
Police are still searching for the man who is described as Caucasian, aged between 25 and 30, with a muscular build, tanned complexion and short brown hair. He was wearing blue board shorts and a dark t-shirt.
It is believed that the man is not the owner or an occupant of the house, which is currently un-occupied.
A 48-year-old Sydney man was sentenced today in the Sydney Magistrates Court to two years and six months in prison for attempting to import pseudoephedrine into Australia.
In August 2010, Customs and Border Protection officers examined a mail parcel which arrived in Australia from Papua New Guinea and found a stereo system containing a black plastic bag filled with pink and yellow granules, believed to be the cold and flu medication ContacNT.
Customs and Border Protection officers and NSW Police officers executed search and seizure warrants at a residence in the Sydney suburb of Campsie where additional quantities of pseudoephedrine were found.
As a result of this warrant action, a man was arrested and charged with supplying a prohibited drug contrary to the NSW Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 and possessing a controlled precursor, an offence against Section 308.2(1) of the Criminal Code Act 1995.
The total weight of the pseudoephedrine imported and found in the possession of the man was approximately 474 grams which could have been used to produce 233 grams of methamphetamine with a street value in excess of $115,000.
Customs and Border Protection National Manager Investigations Kingsley Woodford-Smith said this conviction demonstrated the value of a whole-of-Government approach to combating the illicit drug and precursor market.
“Customs and Border Protection works closely with other agencies, including the NSW Police, to detect, investigate and prosecute people who illegally import prohibited drugs and precursors into Australia,” Mr Woodford-Smith said.
“No matter how highly sophisticated the concealment, it will be detected and you will be caught.”
People convicted of the importation of a marketable amount of pseudoephedrine face a fine of up to $330,000 or 15 years in prison, or both.
A jury has retired to consider whether a former investigator with the New South Wales Crime Commission is guilty of importing drugs.
Mark Standen was charged in June 2008 over a plan to import at least 300 kilograms pseudoephedrine in a shipping container.
Prosecutors have argued the investigator used an informant in the plot to bring the drugs to Australia from Pakistan.
Pseudoephedrine is a controlled drug used in medicines, which can also be used to manufacture the illegal drugs "ice" or "speed".
During the five-month trial defence lawyers have argued their client was not involved in the plan to import and drug and that he always acted properly in his capacity as an investigator.
Justice Bruce James has told the members of the jury to have an open mind when coming to a verdict in the case.
They have ended their deliberations for the day and will resume on Tuesday morning.
