Simon Tran and Duy Khanh Bui to be sentenced for alleged involvement in $235m drug operation

The first two of the 14 accused offenders arrested following the $235 million drug bust near Childers will be sentenced in Bundaberg District Court.

Two of the people accused of growing $235 million worth of marijuana plants near Apple Tree Creek will be sentenced in a Bundaberg court on Friday, September 1.

Simon Tran and Duy Khanh Bui will appear before Bundaberg District Court for sentencing on one charge each of producing dangerous drugs and producing schedule 2 drug exceeding schedule 3 amount.

Mr Bui and Mr Tran have not entered a plea in relation to the charges.

The defence barrister for Mr Bui, Phillip Hardcastle, said his client would require a Vietnamese interpreter, while the lawyer for Mr Tran, Ms Thompson, said he would not require an interpreter.

Police allege the street value of the marijuana seized in the October 2022 raid was more than $235m.

Another co-accused, Truc Cao Hoang Nguyen, will be mentioned in Bundaberg District Court at the next available date to determine a date for sentencing.

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The legal affairs of the remaining co-accused, Kar Choy Chan, Zi Cheng, Siew Tong Choong, Kai Ming Long, Lan Thi Nguyen, Cuong Ba Phung, Mun Kah Siew, Tien Tran, Hui Kiong Wong and Lee Tek Yee are in process.

Judge Tony Moynihan KC said given the alleged offenders have spent 10 months in custody, their sentencing should be scheduled as soon as possible to avoid their spending more time in pre-sentence custody than they are likely to serve if they were convicted.

Fourteen people including 12 men and two women all aged from 25 to 52 were arrested following an extensive drug operation near Apple Tree Creek in October 2022, which uncovered almost 47,000 marijuana plants and seedlings with an estimated street value of $235 million.

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