Australian authorities have seized more than a ton of cocaine worth hundreds of millions of dollars, according to police describing it as one of the country's largest drug busts.
Police listed on Thursday 600kg of cocaine intercepted by the French navy off Tahiti in March and 500kg seized on Christmas Day in Sydneyall destined for the Australian market.
Fifteen men, including commercial fishing operators, were arrested over the past few days for allegedly importing the cocaine from South America.
The arrests followed a two-and-a-half year investigation into fishermen who were allegedly using trawlers to move cocaine from South America to Australia.
Secret operation
Police stated the secret operation culminated in arrests on Christmas Day at Sydney Fish Markets when a trawler docked that had allegedly been used to meet a "mother ship," which police told the Daily Telegraph had travelled from Chile.
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| Australian authorities stated investigations were continuing in South America to find the suppliers of the cocaine [Daniel McCulloch/EPA] |
The authorities released video footage showing three men being arrested aboard a fishing boat and led away in handcuffs.
Another 12 men were arrested over the past few days.
"This is a very significant organised crime group," stated New South Wales Police Force Assistant Commissioner Mark Jenkins.
Chris Sheehan, the federal police acting assistant commissioner, stated that investigations were continuing in South America to find the suppliers of the contraband.
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