Trio Accused Of Plan To Smuggle $250M Drug Haul Into Australia
Police charge all three men
Image: AFP
Three Aussie men stand accused of planning to fly a light aircraft from California to regional Victoria with some pricey excess baggage - $250 million worth of the drug ice to be exact.
Australian Federal Police Superintendent Krissy Barrett alleges the trio planned to stash the drugs inside the six-seater light plane by removing the passenger seats, AAP reports.
"This is a small aircraft that we will allege was to be flown a 72-year-old man was to fly across the Pacific [Ocean] to Australia, to land a regional airfield with an extra weight of 250kg of drugs on board," she said.
"Now I'm not a good flyer at the best of times but that's certainly not a plane I would have wanted to be on."
The 255kg quantity of ice, worth an estimated $255 million, was discovered by the US Drug Enforcement Administration in a northern California storage facility on June 15.
A 72-year-old Melbourne man who is a qualified pilot was arrested at Melbourne Airport on July 5, while a 52-year-old NSW man was stopped at Sydney International Airport on Friday.
Police have linked the discovery of $2.4million in cash in Mildura, regional Victoria, to the alleged trafficking plans.
A third 58-year-old Maribyrnong man connected to the haul was arrested in Melbourne's west on Wednesday.
The trio were charged with conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of methamphetamine.
The NSW man is due to face court on Friday, while the others have already appeared before a magistrate.