Police find $28 million worth of tobacco at illegal NSW plantation

NSW Police have made a more than $28 million discovery at a rural property, making it one of the biggest busts in NSW history.

An illegal tobacco plantation with an estimated value of more than $28 million has been raided by police, seizing 16 tonnes of the crop in one of the biggest crop busts in NSW history.

Officers from NSW Police and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) executed a search warrant at a property in Murga, 55km east of Parkes in central New South Wales, on April 5.

The syndicate was shut down following the raid.

The seizure had an estimated potential excise of more than $28 million. Picture: NSW Police

The illegal tobacco crop was found on a property in Murga, 55km east of Parkes. Picture: NSW Police

The joint investigation into the large-scale illicit plantation was composed of detectives and investigators from the NSW Police Force’s State Crime Command, the Australian Federal Police (AFP), the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), the ATO and the Australian Border Force (ABF) Illicit Tobacco Taskforce.

While no arrests have been made, inquiries are continuing.

No arrests have been made while inquiries continue. Picture: NSW Police

The bust is one of the biggest in the state’s history. Picture: NSW Police

ATO assistant commissioner Justin Clarke said the operations were not run by “genuine farmers or landowners”.

“(They’re run) by criminals living and operating in local communities,” he said.

“Criminals who deal in illicit tobacco pose a serious threat to the Australian community … they use their profits to fund their lifestyles and engage in criminal behaviour well beyond the sale of illicit tobacco.

“Evading excise duty on tobacco costs the community millions of dollars that could be spent on essential community services.”

It has been illegal to grow tobacco in Australia for more than a decade, with the offence carrying a maximum penalty of up to 10 years imprisonment.

It has been illegal to grow tobacco in Australia for over a decade. Picture: NSW Police

More than 16 tonnes of tobacco crop was seized in the rai. Picture: NSW Police

ABF superintendent Sasha Barclay said cultivation of illicit tobacco crops has been on the rise among criminal syndicates, due to highly effective ABF detection and disruption at Australian borders.

“What we’re seeing is more and more criminal syndicates are trying their hand at cultivation to keep up supply as ABF continues to increase the amount of illicit tobacco being detected and seized at the border,” she said.

“These criminal syndicates are sophisticated and run like a business, so they will do whatever it takes to ensure they have a supply and can continue to bring in a profit at the expense of legitimate business owners and the wider Australian community.”