Jamil Hopoate: How ex-NRL star’s cocaine arrest unfolded
For a 514kg cocaine shipment, the moments that led to the arrest of ex NRL star Jamil Hopoate were remarkably quick.
Police & Courts
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For a police investigation that related to 514kg of cocaine, the arrest of former NRL star Jamil Hopoate over 8kg of the haul boiled down to a little over 12 minutes.
Investigators had no idea who they were looking for when the drug haul — that had an estimated wholesale value of $128 million — landed in Australia on May 15.
Packaged in 1kg blocks with branding that included “Boss, Bugatti, Jam and KTM” stamped on each brick, the cocaine arrived via air cargo from the UK hidden inside six tool boxes, according to a police fact sheet tendered in Central Local Court.
That is where the 26-year-old son of controversial retired NRL player, John Hopoate, appeared on Wednesday charged with supplying a large commercial quantity of cocaine.
Hopoate was charged with picking up 8kg from the haul. It is not known who the remainder of the haul was associated with.
Magistrate Philip Stewart refused Hopoate’s application for bail, telling the court he could not be satisfied the ex Manly and Broncos player would turn up to court.
This was despite Canterbury Bulldogs star, Will Hopoate, offering to lodge $50,000 in the form of his house to secure his brother’s release.
Outside court, Hopoate’s high profile lawyer Mahmoud Abbas said his client would make a renewed application for bail in the supreme court.
When the cocaine landed in Australia, it was X-rayed by Australian Border Force investigators who “identified anomalies in the toolboxes”, the document said.
But with no investigation already on foot, police opted to replace the drugs with an “inert” substance and watch the shipment in the hope that someone turned up for it, the police document said.
It was addressed to a company, JP Repairs, to be delivered to a warehouse on Moore St, Leichhardt.
The police allowed the decoy shipment to “continue its natural course of delivery”, which was to go to the freight forwarding company, Toll Dnata on Military Rd, Matraville, in Sydney’s south, where they would keep an eye on it.
They waited for three days.
At 7.30am on May 18 there was finally movement.
Zachary Biady arrived at the Matraville facility and allegedly loaded the shipment of fake cocaine into a Hino truck, the documents said.
From there, Biady allegedly drove it to Ocean St, Pagewood — a quiet suburban street, which is bordered by a large park area known as Gaiarine Gardens.
Surveillance police watched as Biady allegedly parked the truck and left it unattended, the document said.
Then, at 10.38am, a crucial 12 minute window opened that led to Hopoate’s arrest.
The 26-year-old was wearing a fluoro orange high-vis top when police allegedly watched him enter the back of the truck.
At 10.43am Hopoate allegedly exited the back of the truck carrying a black backpack, closed the door and set off on foot about 400m across the park and onto a footbridge onto Ellis St in Pagewood.
There, the police fact sheet said that officers watched him get in the front seat of a grey Hyundai iLoad van, which was waiting on Banksia St Botany.
The van was allegedly being driven by 33-year-old Collaroy woman Leanne Mofoa.
At 10.50am, police stopped the Hyundai on Banksia St and plain clothed police produced their ID, opened the front passenger door and attempted to remove Hopoate from the van.
Police allege that Mofoa “immediately reversed” into Ellis St in an attempt to thwart the police efforts to arrest Hopoate.
The officers were holding on to the passenger door handle as Mofoa reversed and were “pulled a short distance”, the police document said.
Hopoate is alleged to have said “Drive, drive, drive” but when Mofoa reversed and attempted to reverse and turn around, she mounted the kerb on Banksia St.
Police allege Hopoate grabbed the backpack and ran before throwing it over the fence and into the yard of a home.
Hopoate allegedly “jumped a number of fences crossing several residential premises” before ending up on Bay St, Botany, the document said.
He then allegedly jumped the fence of a Bay St office block, ran to the rear of the premises and attempted to scale the back fence.
The ex football star failed and was arrested by police.
Police allege they recovered the backpack, which contained eight blocks of white powder, from the Banksia St yard.
Hopoate was taken to Mascot Police Station and charged.
Mofoa was charged with supplying a large commercial quantity of cocaine and also with using an offensive weapon in company to prevent detention.
She was refused bail to appear in Central Local Court on July 15 alongside Hopoate.
Biady was also charged with supplying a large commercial quantity of cocaine and will face Central Local Court on May 27.
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