A 60-year-old American woman has been busted by Australian police trying to smuggle 2 kg of methamphetamine concealed within her vacuum-packed clothing after arriving in Adelaide from an international flight.
The woman was arrested on Friday after the Australian Border Force selected her for a baggage inspection and found what they described as a ‘white powdery substance’ hidden within two vacuum-packed bags of clothes.
Presumptive testing indicated that the substance was methamphetamine, and federal police were called to take the woman into custody. She has since been charged with importing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, contrary to section 307.1 of the Criminal Code 1995.
If found guilty, the woman faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
“Unfortunately, the market for illicit drugs in Australia is strong,” commented AFP Acting Superintendent Simon Lalic after the woman appeared in court on Monday.
“Across Australia, 27 people on average were admitted to hospital every day in 2021-22 for methamphetamine-related issues,” Lalic continued.
Chief Superintendent Bart England from the Australian Border Force said the agency was cracking down on international drug smuggling gangs who are attempting to tap into Australia’s lucrative drug market.
“Methamphetamine is an incredibly destructive drug. It is extremely addictive. It rips apart families and does untold damage to those who become trapped in its grip,” Superintendent England explained.
He continued: “Our message is clear: whatever illicit substance criminals try to import, and however they try to hide it, we will detect it and they will face significant penalties.”
Last October, two baggage handlers working for Australian flag carrier Qantas at Sydney Airport were charged with a plot to smuggle 100kg of cocaine into Australia worth $40 million at street price.
The men were accused of using their trusted ‘insider’ status to access the cargo hold of a Qantas plane that had just arrived from Johannesburg and removing five bags that were packed with bricks of cocaine.
In 2022, a Malaysian flight attendant was sentenced to five years and eight months in an Australian prison after he pleaded guilty to “repeatedly” smuggling commercial quantities of Heroin into the country.
Australian officials believe the flight attendant was part of a criminal gang which managed to smuggle around AUD $6 million worth of heroin into Australia.
The gang used Malaysian flight attendants to smuggle drugs into Australia, with the majority funnelled through Melbourne Tullamarine International Airport.
