Australia Post probes link between contractors and cigarette smugglers
Australia Post has taken action after allegations its own contractors took part in a plot to import more than half a million illegal cigarettes into Queensland.
A suspected criminal syndicate was busted at a storage facility in Eagle Farm on December 11, where about 586,000 Marlboro and Double Happiness cigarettes were found by Australian Border Force officers.
The raid followed an investigation into hundreds of deliveries to non-existent addresses over several months.
Illegal tobacco bust in Eagle Farm, Brisbane.Credit: Australia Border Force (ABF)
About 16,000 packages weighing more than 111 tonnes were imported between June and October last year – potentially evading taxes worth about a quarter of a billion dollars.
At least seven Australia Post parcel delivery contractors have since been stood down, and the organisation told Brisbane Times on Monday an “internal review” had been completed.
“[We continue] to support the Australian Border Force with an ongoing investigation,” a spokesperson said.
“We have conducted an internal review and are taking steps to strengthen our systems and controls.
“We regularly review the agreements we hold with contractors and take necessary and appropriate action in line with any breach of policy.”
Australia Post is authorised to disclose information to investigative agencies, and made 4453 disclosures to commonwealth bodies in 2023-24, and another 1964 to state bodies.
It comes after Brisbane Times revealed many convenience stores and other outlets were selling illegally imported cigarettes under the counter – or sometimes in plain sight.
None were prepared to discuss their supply chains.
“They’re illegal … I don’t know where we get them, I’m not the manager,” one seller told this masthead.
Almost all stores sold Manchester cigarettes, and many also stocked Chinese brand Double Happiness, Korean brand ESSE, imported Marlboro Reds and Winfield Blues among others.
Prices ranged from $17 to $25 a pack – about 50 per cent cheaper than most legitimately taxed plain-packaging equivalents.
During a 12-week regulatory blitz last year, more than 5.2 million cigarettes and 1.2 tonnes of loose tobacco were seized from Queensland retailers.
About 8500 illegal vapes and 12,000 nicotine pouches were also found at the tobacconists, convenience stores, gift shops and petrol stations.
Organised crime is believed to control about 75 per cent of the market, and police believe criminal elements are linked to a spate of firebombings in Queensland.
At least 350 retail businesses across Queensland are under investigation by Queensland Health, which is responsible for enforcing tobacco regulations. At least 13 businesses are being prosecuted in court.
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