Cairns crime: Alleged Mareeba cocaine smuggling committal hearing told pilot feared for his life

A pilot who confessed to PNG police he was being paid to haul 549kg of cocaine told a colleague his life was under threat, Cairns Magistrates Court heard on Thursday.

PILOT David Cutmore feared for his life and had anxiety after a criminal syndicate extorted money he was paid by another alleged syndicate for ‘black flights’ to bring cocaine into Far North Queensland, Cairns Magistrates Court heard on Thursday.

A committal hearing to determine if the men will stand trial is underway at Cairns Magistrates Court before Magistrate Kevin Priestly for Melbourne quartet Salvatore Formica, 34, Pierino Forni, 62, Aiden Anis Khoder, 32 and George Machem, 32, who are facing charges in relation to an alleged bid to import 549kg of cocaine from PNG to Mareeba in July 2020 and for an alleged successful cocaine import worth $90m in 2018.

Witness Leisl Haris said Mr Cutmore told her about the black flights importing drugs.

“I believe the money was taken back from him,” Ms Haris said.

“It wasn’t the outfit he was working for, it was another one.”

Police have alleged Mr Cutmore was paid $500,000 for the 2018 flight and offered $2m for three more flights.

Australian Federal Police arrest a man over an alleged cocaine smuggling operation. Picture: AFP.

After the plane crashed on July 26, 2020, more than 500kg of cocaine was seized at Papa Lea Lea village, 30km from Port Moresby.

Mr Cutmore has been charged in PNG with smuggling prohibited goods but is not facing any charges in Australia.

Cocaine found hidden in mangroves at Lea Lea village in PNG. Picture: AFP.

Ms Haris said he didn’t really know for whom he was working.

“He was kept on the outs, I don’t believe he even knew their names,” Ms Haris said.

She said he told her he was working for more than one syndicate.

One syndicate made a threat on his life, she said.

“He would suffer from extreme anxiety and confide in me what was going on,” Ms Haris said.

Australian Federal Police allege that smuggled cocaine was to be transported into a false floor in a trailer at Rocky War Memorial Park at Tolga. Picture: AFP.

Pilot Gerard Lappin gave evidence that in May 2020 he flew Peter Forni and another man to Innisfail and Mareeba and their cargo included 15 empty 20l jerry cans, empty boxes and playstations.

He said he didn’t talk to the men about what they were doing, and they retained him to fly them around the Far North for about a week.

But he ultimately flew back to Melbourne with no passengers and no cargo.

Police have alleged in court documents that Formica “has been an active member of a trans-national organised criminal syndicate alleged to be the Ndrangheta”.

Originally published as Cairns crime: Alleged Mareeba cocaine smuggling committal hearing told pilot feared for his life