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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Gold Coast man, 65, arrested over $1.3million meth importation

A 65-year-old Gold Coast man has been charged over his alleged involvement in attempting to import more than 10kgs of methamphetamine with an estimated street value of $1.36 million.

Investigators from the joint-agency Taskforce Sentry today charged the man and a 46-year-old woman they allege was also involved in the attempted importation.

“They were arrested in Benowa yesterday afternoon following a report earlier this month to the Australian Federal Police from United States Customs and Border Protection, which discovered 10.8kgs of methamphetamine within a consignment being shipped from Los Angeles to the Gold Coast,” Queensland Police said in a statement.

Police say the methamphetamine was concealed within a computer tower destined for an address in Surfers Paradise.

It will be alleged the two people received the consignment, in which the methamphetamine had been replaced with an inert substance by investigators. Officers also seized thousands of dollars in cash, alleged to be the proceeds of crime.

The 65-year-old man has been charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of border controlled drug, knowingly dealing in proceeds of crime greater than $100,000, and possessing a dangerous drug; while a 46-year-old woman was charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug.

If found guilty, the maximum penalty for the offences is 25 years imprisonment. Both appeared in Southport Magistrates Court today.

AFP Detective Superintendent Helen Schneider said the arrests showed how Taskforce Sentry gives Queensland law enforcement agencies greater options in disrupting criminal networks.

“This taskforce was established to inflict maximum damage to the criminals who seek to line their own pockets by bringing illicit and dangerous substances into Australia,” Detective Superintendent Schneider said.

“By stopping this package from hitting the streets, we are protecting Australians from the terrible social damage caused by drug abuse and taking money away from the criminal networks who feed on it.”

Taskforce Sentry comprises of members of the Australian Federal Police, The Queensland Police Service’s Crime and Intelligence Command, Australian Border Force and the Department of Home Affairs, collaborating to gather intelligence, implement investigative strategies and take action against syndicates smuggling and distributing illicit items including through postal and cargo streams.

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