World’s biggest drug syndicates eyeing Australia

Cocaine cartels are making unprecedented attempts to send huge shipments here in a bid to cash in on Australia’s high prices and demand.

Major international drug syndicates are increasingly trying to send shipments to Australia. Picture: iStock

Ice seizures on our borders have surged by 80 per cent in the space of a year as the world’s biggest drug syndicates eye Australia.

And cocaine cartels are making unprecedented numbers of attempts to send huge shipments here as Mr Bigs move to cash in on high Australian prices and seemingly inexhaustible demand.

Australian Border Force figures show the incredible growth in detections of international methamphetamine smuggling attempts.

There were a total of 2241 ABF meth detections in 2021/22, compared with 1239 the previous year.

Those ranged from small amounts sent by post to colossal individual consignments of hundreds of kilograms, often involving corrupt figures involved in Australia’s domestic supply chain.

ABF acting Commander for southern maritime and enforcement Kelly-Anne Parish said detections had become bigger and more frequent.

“We have seen a really significant spike in detections of meth,” she said.

The detections here are only part of what is an extraordinary level of illicit drug activity directed at Australia.

A number of huge consignments of meth and cocaine were stopped by foreign authorities before they were transported Down Under.

Those included:

• Last week’s 76kg shipment of Mexican meth hidden in transformers which were to be flown out of Hong Kong.

• The 676kg load of meth which was confiscated in Malaysia in August.

• A 300kg meth shipment concealed in multipurpose slip mats which were to travel out of South Africa on air cargo.

• A 700kg cocaine haul grabbed by New Zealand authorities in February.

• The thwarting of a 950kg cocaine shipment in Italy.

A number of huge consignments of meth and cocaine have been stopped by foreign authorities before they were transported Down Under.

Acting Commander Parish said those interceptions were crucial and the result of increased co-operation with foreign jurisdictions.

“That doesn’t make big news in Australia but that first layer of defence is … the most important,” she said.

“Our role is to stop it getting into Australia.”

A major priority for the ABF is to cut out those domestic supply chain insiders whose corrupt conduct opens what is colloquially known as “The Door” for the big traffickers.

Those figures, involved in airlines, ports, transport and logistics, are regarded as major players for the biggest importers and the subject of major scrutiny from the agency’s Jardena task force.

Syndicates operated by Notorious Crime Family boss George Marrogi, Comanchero bikie Mark Buddle and Chi Lop Tse of Asia’s infamous Sam Gor cartel are all believed to have had crucial help from trusted insiders.

Some of those shipments involve using a “rip” methodology in which a corrupt foreign dock or airport worker places the drugs in a container carrying lawful cargo without the knowledge of the importer.

It is then removed by a trusted insider when it arrives in Australia.

“The people with those (legitimate) consignments wouldn’t even know it happened,” acting Commander Parish said.

The other heavy contributor to the number of seizures is groups which send smaller amounts via the post on a “high-volume, low-quantity” principle.

Those operators accept a degree of loss from law enforcement confiscation, working on the basis that a lot will get through because of their high volume of smaller illicit parcels.

“You’ll see hundreds and hundreds of attempts with smaller quantities,” acting Commander Parish said.