Brisbane man facing court after 83kg of ice allegedly found in wooden pallets
A Brisbane man is due to face court today after the Australian Federal Police allegedly found 83kg of methamphetamine hidden inside hollowed out wooden pallets.
Police arrested the man in December, five months after Border Force officers at the Port of Brisbane found the ice stash in a shipping container imported from Thailand.
The ice was hidden inside timber slats that formed the top of pallets transporting tiles.
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Inside the hollowed out slats of wood were large bags of methamphetamine. AFP
Each of the slats affixed to the top of the pallet contained a bag of about 500g of the illegal narcotic.
The 83kg found has an estimated street value of $10.2 million, the AFP said in a statement.
Investigators took the drugs out then sent the shipment for a controlled delivery to a self-storage facility south of Brisbane.
It was there police allegedly observed a 32-year-old Iranian national unloading the pallets into individual storage sheds.
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A Brisbane man faces life in prison over the importation of 83kg of ice. AFP
Police said the man allegedly made several visits to the facility to examine the pallets.
Officers from the Queensland Joint Organised Task Force conducted a search warrant on the man's home in Shailer Park in September.
In December he was arrested and charged with three counts of importing a commercial quantity of border controlled drugs, namely methamphetamine.
He was also charged with possession of unlawfully imported border control drugs and dealing with the proceeds of crime.
If convicted he could face life in prison.
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The drugs were allegedly hidden in the planks of wooden pallets used to hold tiles. AFP
AFP Detective Superintendent Helen Schneider said drug importers showed callous disregard for the misery they caused to Australians addicted by methamphetamine.
"Removing 83kg of methamphetamine from Australian streets ensures our communities are safer because the illicit drug trade facilitates a supply chain of violence and horror stretching all the way overseas," Detective Superintendent Schneider said
"While demand for methamphetamine in Australia remains strong, greedy importers will continue trying to evade law enforcement, but the AFP and our partners will stay one step ahead of them."
The Queensland Joint Organised Task Force (QJOCTF) is comprised of officers from the AFP, Border Force, Queensland Police and the Department of Home Affairs.
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