(LibertyInsider.org) – An Australian man faces charges for an audacious attempt to smuggle at least two tons of cocaine into the country. The unnamed individual, reportedly operating on behalf of an organized crime group, allegedly spearheaded multiple plots to smuggle the narcotics in sight unseen. When these plans failed, multiple bricks of cocaine began washing up on local beaches, prompting an extensive investigation that led to his arrest.
Authorities began receiving reports about strange, barnacle-encrusted packages washing ashore in New South Wales (NSW) late last year. The first incident occurred on December 22 when a citizen contacted Tuggerah Lakes Police after finding a package at Magenta Beach. Testing confirmed the substance was cocaine, prompting an immediate investigation and search of the coastline for additional drugs.
An alleged drug trafficker has been charged after being linked to bricks of cocaine that mysteriously washed up on Australian beaches in 2023 and early 2024. https://t.co/lVRQOZV3YU
— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 18, 2024
On December 24, the NSW Police Force warned the public about illicit bricks on X, formerly known as Twitter. They also disclosed that the investigation turned up at least six other packages at nearby beaches, including Blacksmiths, Avoca, and Manly.
It wasn’t immediately clear to local police how or when the drugs ended up in the ocean. Nearly all of the packages that turned up showed signs of significant barnacle growth on their outer wrapping, suggesting they had been present in the water for some time.
Additional reports poured in from Bondi Beach and other Sydney coastal areas in January. Over the following months, the total amount of recovered cocaine ballooned to a staggering 256 kilograms (about 564 pounds).
While the public was initially unaware of the connection, federal authorities began investigating the global organized crime unit and its leader in early 2023. The Australian Federal Police (AFP), the Queensland Police Service, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, and the Australian Border Force collaborated under the umbrella of the Queensland Joint Organised Crime Taskforce (QJOCTF) on “Operation Groot.”
According to a statement from the AFP, A breakthrough in that case led to the arrest of a 36-year-old man from Brisbane, who they accuse of spearheading the transnational organized crime front, on April 17. He faces at least seven charges related to importing commercial quantities of drugs and dealing in the proceeds of crime, all of which carry a potential sentence of life in prison.
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