Sydney, April 4, (dpa/GNA) – Australian authorities on Tuesday said they intercepted 336 kilograms of heroin, concealed inside concrete blocks in a shipment sent from Malaysia to Brisbane, in what they said was the second largest shipment of the drug ever detected in Australia.
The heroin, which has an estimated street value of some $269 million Australian ($182 million US), represents more than a third of the country’s annual heroin consumption, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Australian Border Force (AFB) said in a joint statement.
The shipment arrived on March 13 at the Port of Brisbane. Upon inspection ABF officers identified 960 packages inside two concrete blocks, each weighing about 500kg, marked as solar panel accessories inside a sea freight container.
Testing of the packages’ content returned a presumptive result for heroin.
Police said a 55-year-old man who allegedly collected the consignment in Brisbane and transported it to New South Wales was arrested and charged.
According to authorities, this was the second largest onshore detection of heroin in Australian law enforcement history. The AFP and ABF seized 450kg of heroin in Melbourne in 2021.
“The AFP is committed to stopping criminals using the Pacific as a maritime drug highway and will continue to identify and disrupt transnational organised crime syndicates seeking to harm Australia and generate millions of dollars of profits from criminal activity,” AFP Commander John Tanti said.
“The investigation is ongoing and further arrests can’t be ruled out.”