- Police seize largest cocaine haul in Australian history
- Comancheros involved in shipment, police allege
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Two members of a syndicate who allegedly attempted to import $1 billion worth of cocaine into Australia by collecting it on a small pleasure boat from a “mother ship” off Queensland have applied for bail.
The plot, discovered in November when the group’s boat broke down while trying to recover the drugs, was organized largely through text messages, according to newly released court documents linked to the bail application in the Brisbane Supreme Court. .
“We’ll kill that (boat) runner once we get back,” an anonymous member of the group allegedly said in an encrypted group chat message, reported courier mail.
Australian Federal Police have charged 11 men and two minors with conspiracy to import 2.34 tonnes of cocaine into the country by sea.
The men and some of the crew from the larger ship are alleged to have attempted to import the drugs and arrests were made. following a collaborative effort by the AFP and Queensland Police investigating a transnational organization crime union.
Police allege one of the men arrested was the vice-president of the Brisbane chapter of the outlaw Comanchero motorcycle club.
“Investigations into the origin of the drugs are ongoing and we will work with our national and international law enforcement partners to identify criminal syndicates and anyone else involved in facilitating this alleged drug importation,” AFP commander Stephen Jay.
“Let these arrests serve as a warning to those criminal syndicates planning attempts to bring illicit substances into our country. We stand together, ready to act and disrupt their criminal activities, along with our law enforcement partners.”
Authorities had been tracking the vessel supposedly sent to collect the drugs from a mother ship located off the coast of Queensland.

It has been considered one of the largest cocaine importation attempts in Australian history.

The cocaine that was supposedly attempted to be imported weighs the same as a Ford Raptor ute
The amount of cocaine that was supposedly attempted to be imported weighs the same as a Ford Raptor truck.
It is estimated to have a street value of $760 million and could be equivalent to 11.7 million street sales, AFP said.
Police investigations began in November after intelligence information led authorities to a criminal syndicate linked to the Comanchero gang.
Federal and Queensland police, as well as the Border Force, tracked a recreational fishing boat last week and it encountered another boat.
The pleasure boat was stranded about 18 kilometers off the northeastern tip of K’Gari (Fraser Island) after a suspected mechanical breakdown in which authorities began making arrests.
During the search of the ship, 51 bales containing 40 kilos of white substance packaged in individual blocks of 1 kilo were recovered, AFP indicated.
The 11 men and two juveniles have been charged with one count of conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of border-controlled drugs, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.

The ship returned to the Queensland coast after suffering mechanical problems and breaking down.

Officers found 15 black and yellow waterproof bags containing 32 blocks of 1kg each that tested positive for cocaine.

The 11 men and two minors have been charged with one count of conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of border-controlled drugs.
The drug bust comes after police seized more than $160 million worth of illicit substances in April.
The AFP charged three men over the plot when 500kg of cocaine was seized at a boat ramp in central Queensland. Officers found 15 black and yellow waterproof bags containing 32 blocks of 1kg each that tested positive for cocaine.
Australian Border Force and federal police have seized more than 33.7 tonnes of illicit drugs and precursors in the last financial year.
This month, police carried out a targeted operation against the Comanchero gang and their associates, which led to the arrest of 33 people.
The operation uncovered multiple weapons, a firearm, ammunition and significant amounts of cash, including approximately $100,000 hidden in the garden of a home in Wiley Park, in Sydney’s southwest.
Police confiscated illicitly imported tobacco, including boxes of Chinese cigarettes and vaporizers with an estimated value of more than $1.5 million.