Danielle Bell, Collins Udemba: Men arrested following drugs raids at Footscray

Police have told a court how two accused members of an alleged heroin operation used fake identities and a vacant Footscray home as part of their elaborate plot.

Two accused members of a heroin importation syndicate are preparing to face trial after denying involvement in an alleged elaborate plot that went horribly wrong.

Danielle Bell, from Sunshine North, and Collins Udemba, from Cairnlea, were arrested on April 27 during simultaneous raids at their home addresses.

They faced the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday where police put forward allegations of an elaborate plot including a Lagos identity known only as ‘Tiger’, numerous fake ID cards and a Melbourne contact called ‘Bishop’.

The duo came to the attention of police in March last year after allegedly using fake drivers licences to try and retrieve a package from a DHL facility in Port Melbourne.

Detective senior constable Emma Hockey told the court the package, which contained about 350g of heroin concealed in flasks, had been returned to the facility after it wasn’t able to be delivered to an vacant home in Footscray.

She said Mr Udemba allegedly made three calls to the facility using an assumed identity in an attempt to get the parcel redelivered between March 15 and 26.

When this didn’t work, as border force officers had already discovered the alleged concealed heroin, Ms Bell was asked by a man she knew as Bishop to produce counterfeit identification and collect the package.

The heroin allegedly seized by police weight almost 700g and was worth “tens of thousands of dollars”.

On March 17, the 46-year-old was allegedly caught on security footage attending the facility in an attempt to retrieve the package.

Detective senior constable Hockey said there were two more attempts to retrieve the package, before activity ceased on March 26.

When arrested, Mr Udemba was allegedly in possession of an identical package with four flasks containing about 350g of heroin.

Ms Bell told investigators she’d been “set up” by Bishop who told her the package was a gift for his ex girlfriend – Police allege Mr Udemba is Bishop.

In court lawyers for both Mr Udemba and Ms Bell sought to minimise any alleged involvement in the plot, arguing their personal circumstances showed they were not “living extravagantly”.

“You have no evidence of him living a life where he had access to significant or large amounts of money,” Mr Udemba’s lawyer James Anderson said.

“In cases like this wouldn’t you say it’s common for a patsy to be put forward to pick up the drugs?”

Ms Bell’s lawyer Emma Strugnell argued her client had been “quite candid” with investigators, quoting an recorded interview where Ms Bell allegedly said; “I just got had. How f…… stupid.”

Detective senior constable Hockey admitted police were unable to identify who placed the alleged order or provided the “significant funds” required.

Mr Udemba pleaded not guilty to five charges including possession of a traffickable quantity of heroin and attempting to possess a traffickable quantity of heroin.

Ms Bell pleaded not guilty to 23 charges including attempting to possess a traffickable quantity of heroin, drug possession, producing counterfeit identification and possessing counterfeit cash.

The presiding magistrate found there was sufficient evidence against the pair and committed them for trial in the County Court on March 22.