Australian Border Force supervisor on drug charges
An Australian Border Force supervisor has been accused of accepting bribes to ensure the safe passage of cocaine, as a new multi-agency strike team targets ‘trusted insiders’ facilitating serious and organised crime.
An Australian Border Force supervisor has been accused of accepting bribes to ensure the safe passage of cocaine, as a new multi-agency strike team targets “trusted insiders” facilitating serious and organised crime.
Rita Gargiulo, 50, allegedly colluded with a crime figure and received cash and other high value items in part to ensure a 6.9kg parcel of cocaine bypassed border examinations.
The ABF employee was due to appear in Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday.
She is charged with receiving a bribe as a commonwealth official, abuse of public office, unauthorised disclosure of information, and aiding and abetting the importation of border-controlled drugs.
The importation offence carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
A Mount Pritchard man, Cosmo Commisso, 67, who is alleged to have links to organised crime, has been charged with offences including bribing a commonwealth official and aiding and abetting the importation of border controlled drugs.
He was due to appear in Fairfield Local Court on Wednesday.
Another two men, aged 25 and 48, were also charged with attempting to possess border controlled drugs.
The Australian Federal Police and NSW Police said in a joint statement that all four were charged under Operation Proctor, launched specifically to investigate the ABF employee and her alleged support of the organised crime figure.
They are among seven alleged offenders charged under three separate Multi Agency Strike Team investigations since the team was formed to target corrupt insiders in November 2024.
The new strike team has 40 full-time investigators and analysts and involves state and federal police, the ABF, Austrac, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, NSW Crime Commission and the Australian Taxation Office.
Corrupt public and private officials are being targeted by the team. “Also known as trusted insiders, these double-dealing employees unlawfully access information such as security or operational details, or use subterfuge, to help organised crime,” the police statement reads.
“Organised criminals highly value and seek out trusted insiders. Some stay on the organised crime payroll for years.”
The ABF employee’s position as a supervisor allowed her to search cargo and ABF systems to determine if parcels were flagged for examination, police said.
“It is alleged the ABF member had received cash and high-value items during the past few months, partly to ensure the safe passage of the parcel and to provide information about a dummy run of cosmetics which arrived in Australia from Malaysia on 21 February, 2025,” the statement reads.
Separately, a western Sydney father and son, aged 52 and 27, are accused of used their positions of trust to import about two tonnes of illegal tobacco, equal to about 1.9 million cigarettes.
They were arrested on February 5 under Operation Bewdley and have each been charged with importing tobacco products with intent to defraud revenue, and two counts of possessing tobacco with unpaid duty. The 27-year-old was also charged with dealing in the proceeds of crime.
Police say they were entrusted with transporting goods under customs control and took advantage of their supply chain position to import the illegal cigarettes in airfreight containers declared as legitimate goods.
Before the containers were transported to a licensed customs warehouse, it is alleged the men substituted out the illicit cigarettes with legitimate goods at a Chullora storage facility.
One tonne of illegal tobacco was seized from the Chullora storage facility, and another tonne from their family home in Yagoona from what was a suspected previous importation, as well as about $250,000 in cash.
A Melbourne man, 20, linked to a Sydney logistics worker, was charged with drug trafficking by South Australia Police on January 9, when heroin was found in his car. It is alleged he was returning to Melbourne to sell the drugs when he was arrested near Tailem Bend, 85km southeast of Adelaide, as a result of information provided by the strike team.
The Sydney logistics worker was the strike team’s initial target in an investigation known as Operation Tampa, and has been dismissed from his job “for alleged activities that did not follow company policies and processes”, police said.
Investigations are ongoing.
Police said people working at ports, airports, in freight and post services and logistics can facilitate drug and tobacco importations.
Sydney is the main thoroughfare, with 59 per cent of all illicit drugs trafficked into Australia entering through NSW.
It is estimated 70 per cent of serious organised criminals targeting Australia are offshore.
Australian Border Force Deputy Commissioner Tim Fitzgerald said the ABF was “committed to identifying trusted insiders who attempt to infiltrate border controls for criminal interest … this includes employees within the ABF who are entrusted to protect the community from harm”.
“There is no place within the Australian Border Force for people who are willing to abuse their position for criminal gain. Our officers occupy a position of trust. Whilst we acknowledge the alleged conduct in this matter is unacceptable, this incident is not a reflection of the culture and commitment of our ABF officers across the country.”
AFP Deputy Commissioner Ian McCartney said the strike team would “target employees who seem to be law-abiding Australians but instead are operating in the shadows of organised crime”.
“We used to call these alleged offenders trusted insiders. However, they are really acting like double dealers by working both sides.
“Australia’s security and safety is being undermined by serious criminals who traffic illicit commodities into NSW and other locations in Australia. Organised criminals are active and successful when there is vulnerability and profitability. That is why they need trusted insiders, drug supply chains, dedicated encrypted communication devices and the ability to launder their illicit profits.
“It becomes a national security risk when supply chains are corrupted.”
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