Man jailed for importing $47 million worth of cocaine from Mexican drug cartel

An Australian man has been jailed for importing cocaine worth an estimated $47 million from a Mexican drug cartel.

A 50-year-old man was yesterday (19 August) sentenced to nine years in prison by Downing Centre District Court after an international investigation into 188kg of cocaine.

Pleading guilty earlier this year to attempting to possess a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug, he will spend the next few years behind bars.

The cocaine was seized in 2019 after police observed the man transporting ingots of aluminium metal and attempting to gain access to the cocaine he believed was stashed inside them.

The man was already in prison for an unrelated offence when police served him with a court attendance notice last year for his part in importing the cocaine supplied by a Mexican drug cartel.

AFP

AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Luke Wilson said disrupting the supply of cocaine into Australia was vitally important to tackling organised crime.

He said: "The high demand for cocaine in Australia is at the forefront of our battle with organised crime syndicates.

"They see that big dollar sign over Australia and know the profit they can make is substantially more than any other target market. Law enforcement cannot win this fight alone.

"As a community, we need to continue educating each other about the high risks associated with illicit drug use; to reduce the harm, demand and ultimately the profit going back to organised crime."

Australian police believe the successful seizure of the $47 million stash of cocaine has saved the country more than $120 million in the costs of drug related crime and harm.

AFP

John Watson, Detective Superintendent for New South Wales Police, said that of the cocaine they catch being smuggled into Australia, 'most originates from Colombia and other areas of South America'.

Watson made the point that the damage done by cocaine is not just down to it being an illegal and harmful drug, as he pointed towards the impact the drug trade has on local areas.

He said: "The illicit cultivation of coca bush in these areas significantly impact upon local indigenous communities and nearly half is carried out in areas with special environmental protection status.

"The reality is that by partaking in both the importation or recreational use of cocaine here and overseas, you are supporting the proliferation of serious crime around the world and the devastation of other people’s lives."

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