Fijian faces charges of importing, possessing illicit drugs
AFijian man is facing charges for trying to import the drug methamphetamine and being in possession of carrying the drug in Australia.
The 22-year-old who is yet to be named was arrested by the Australian Federal Police on February 24 for allegedly being involved in importing a large haul of crystal methamphetamine after a container was delivered to an address in Western Sydney last month. The Australian Federal Police has also charged another four men, after more than 100 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine was stopped from hitting Australian streets.
According to reports from Nine News Australia, the seizure saw an estimated street value of $101 million which was actually made in the Guangdong Province in China, whereby the drugs were found on the floor of a shipping container that was to depart from the Yantian Port in Shenzhen.
The Fijian national faces similar charges with a 38-year-old Australian and 42-year-old Hong Kong national who were also charged on the same day. The accused face maximum penalty of life imprisonment if convicted.
Australian Federal Police Detective Acting Superintendent Luke Needham in an online breaking news on the Australian channel nine said the unprecedented merging of the two countries (China and Australia) efforts to combat organised crime was continuing to pay dividends in the form of harmful drugs that would never reach Australian streets. Australian Border Force Regional Commander of New South Wales Tim Fitzgerald said it should come as a small win for deterring drugs “which destroy lives and tear families apart.”
The haul was a joint operation between the Australian Federal Police, NSW Police, the Australian Border Force, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and local Chinese authorities.
The Fijian national, Australian and Hong Kong nationals are scheduled to appear in Sydney Central Local Court on April 26.
The 22-year-old who is yet to be named was arrested by the Australian Federal Police on February 24 for allegedly being involved in importing a large haul of crystal methamphetamine after a container was delivered to an address in Western Sydney last month.