An Italian national is expected to appear before Downing Centre District Court today (22 November, 2024) charged with allegedly importing 15kg of methamphetamine into Australia concealed in his luggage.
Australian Border Force (ABF) officers allegedly detected the illicit drugs yesterday (20 November, 2024) after selecting the man, 18, for a baggage examination when he arrived at Sydney Airport on a flight from Europe.
They allegedly found packages of a white substance hidden in three large black plastic packages in the man's suitcase.
Initial testing of the substance returned a positive result for methamphetamine.
The AFP arrested and charged the man with one count of importing a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug, contrary to section 307.1 of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth). The offence carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
This amount of methamphetamine could have been sold as almost 150,000 street deals with an estimated value of $13 million.
AFP Detective Superintendent Morgen Blunden said the AFP and its partners were committed to stamping out criminality in the airport environment, including by transnational drug syndicates.
"Despite all the risks involved, we are still regularly arresting people who have attempted to bring illicit drugs into our country through our airports," he said.
"No matter how elaborate or creative the attempts are, the AFP and our partners are working tirelessly to prevent airports being used as part of the criminal supply chain."
ABF Superintendent Elke West said every day, officers were observing passengers' behavior as they transited through airport terminals, looking out for any indicators that might raise suspicions and warrant further inspection.
"ABF officers rely on their intuition and monitoring of passenger behaviours, as well as intelligence and liaison with partner agencies, to detect criminality at the border," Superintendent West said.
"Stopping any quantity of illicit drugs flooding into the market is a win for our officers, protects the community and removes the substance from causing any future harm."