Pacific crime warning after cops take $44m bite out of ‘illicit drug superhighway’
Police say they will not let organised crime turn the Pacific into an “illicit drug superhighway” after two men were allegedly caught with 110kg of cocaine in Queensland’s remote north.
A supplied image obtained on Wednesday, September 4, 2024, of one of two men have been charged with possessing a commercial quantity of cocaine in Far North Queensland, Seisia, Cape York Peninsula. (AAP Image/Supplied by AFP)
The men – both aged 39 – have been accused of travelling to the Cape York Peninsula to collect more than $40 million worth of the drug from a small boat in the Torres Strait on Tuesday afternoon.
Australian Federal Police allege officers saw the pair remove polystyrene boxes from the vessel before loading them into a car at the remote Queensland town of Seisia.
Officers intercepted the vehicle and searched the boxes, allegedly finding 110 packages containing a white substance.
AFP said testing later returned a positive result for cocaine, with the haul having an estimated street value of $44 million.
“The AFP and our partners will not let organised crime turn the Pacific into an illicit drug superhighway, fuelling their own greed at the expense of the Australian community,” AFP acting commander Adrian Telfer said.
The men were arrested and flown to Cairns where they were charged with possessing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug.
The offence holds a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The men are set to appear in Cairns Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
