Sanipepa Egan allegedly trafficked $1m worth of meth in Rebels-linked Mildura ‘dead drop’ racket

A Wyndham Vale man allegedly caught with 2kg of meth says he thought he was dropping off tobacco, with police linking his weekly deliveries to a Rebels bikie gang syndicate.

A Wyndham Vale man has been denied bail after allegedly being busted by police with two kilograms of methamphetamine in Red Cliffs on Tuesday. Picture: Generic

A Wyndham Vale man who allegedly trafficked 2kg of meth in Mildura told police he thought he was delivering tobacco as part of a family business.

Sanipepa Egan, 27, faced Mildura Magistrates Court on Wednesday, seeking bail for charges of trafficking a large commercial quantity of methamphetamine.

The court heard police pulled over Mr Egan at Red Cliffs for a breath test and allegedly uncovered 2kg of meth, with an estimated street value of $1m.

Sanipepa Egan allegedly told police he believed he was delivering tobacco and not meth. Picture: Generic

It was alleged Mr Egan was part of a syndicate that included a patched member of the Rebels Outlaw Motorcycle Gang.

Purportedly, police have surveillance footage that showed Mr Egan allegedly making deliveries of large amounts of meth to a Deakin Ave address and other locations around Mildura on multiple occasions this year.

The court heard Mr Egan allegedly made these deliveries on an almost weekly basis.

Mr Egan allegedly told police he had been involved in dead drops but he thought they were tobacco and had no idea it was meth.

Senior Constable Eamonn Devlin gave evidence that he was concerned that Mr Egan could flee given his supposed links to the Rebels bikie gang.

Constable Devlin alleged that Mr Egan and his co-accused had equal stakes in the alleged drug syndicate.

Mr Egan’s lawyer Sarah Dunstan told the court her client did not have a criminal history, nor a passport, saying strict conditions and the fact the co-accused was in custody would ameliorate any concerns police may have.

Magistrate Michael Coghlan expressed concern at the sheer amount of meth that Mr Gean was allegedly trafficking before denying him bail.

She added he was hoped to be bailed to his mum’s house in Robinvale, where all of his mother’s family lived.

“He provides minimal risk to the community,” Ms Dunstan said.

But Magistrate Michael Coghlan expressed concern about the volume of drugs involved.

“This was the icing on the cake — two kilograms of methamphetamine, allegedly, in a car driven by you,” Mr Coghlan said.

“These are very substantial quantities of drugs … I would have thought the only likely outcome would be a term of imprisonment.”

Mr Egan was denied bail and due to return to court for a committal mention on July 16.