Australia’s biggest cocaine bust: AFP charges 13 people over attempt to import 2.34 tonnes in Queensland

The Australian Federal Police has charged 13 people in connection with the nation’s biggest cocaine seizure — including one man believed to be a high-ranking Comanchero outlaw motorcycle club member.

The arrests came as part of a joint operation with Queensland Police Service that was established in November after authorities received intelligence that an alleged criminal syndicate with links to the Comanchero motorcycle gang were planning a multi-tonne import of a border-controlled drug into Australia.

Last week the AFP, QPS and Australian Border Force tracked a recreational fishing boat that had been recently purchased by a 35-year-old man.

The boat allegedly travelled out to sea where it met up with a “mothership” to collect the cocaine, before returning back to the Queensland coastline.

As it returned, police believe the boat suffered a mechanical issue and became stranded 18km off the northeastern tip of K’gari, formerly known as Fraser Island.

The breakdown is understood to have caused police to begin making arrests on sea and on land.

“Two members of a group planning to collect the drugs on-shore, men aged 43 and 44, were arrested by QPS tactical officers in the vicinity of the Strathdees Boat Ramp, near the Port of Bundaberg, about 7pm on Saturday,” an AFP spokesperson said.

Two men on the boat, aged 35 and 57, were arrested around 40 minutes later.

Police onboard the vessel located 51 bales with roped netting around them, each allegedly contained about 40kg of a “white substance” packaged into individual 1kg blocks.

The substance was later tested and returned a presumptive positive result for cocaine.

Moments after the raid on the boat, police on land conducted more arrests, including three men aged 20, 22 and 28 near a fast food restaurant in Bundaberg East, and three more men aged 20, 28 and 34, as well as two juveniles after a traffic stop near Link Road in Bundaberg East.

A search warrant was also executed at a house in Brisbane, where a 51-year-old male resident was arrested in his residence in Victoria Point.

“The total estimated gross weight of the suspected cocaine located is 2.34 tonnes, which is the largest amount of cocaine seized by the AFP,” a spokesperson said.

“The AFP will allege one of the men arrested on Saturday night was the vice-president of the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle club’s Brisbane chapter.”

Each of the 13 people were charged with: One count of conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of border-controlled drugs.

The maximum penalty is life imprisonment.

AFP Commander Stephen Jay said: “We know that criminals go to extreme lengths, and often risk their own lives, to smuggle drugs into Australia with no regard to the harm they cause to Australian communities.”

“This alleged attempt to collect more than two tonnes of cocaine from the ocean shows that criminals will do anything for their own greed and profit.

“Anyone involved in these at-sea trafficking enterprises is not just risking their freedom – they’re also risking their life. Multiple people have been rescued from the ocean in recent years after hitting trouble while allegedly trying to collect cocaine consignments.”

“Let these arrests serve as a warning to those criminal syndicates plotting attempts to bring illicit substances into our country, we stand together ready to act and disrupt your criminal activities, together with our law enforcement partners.”

The 11 men are expected to appear before Maryborough Magistrates Court, Bundaberg Magistrates Court and Cleveland Magistrates Court on Monday.