The cocaine haul recovered from the ocean is recorded. Picture: AFP
Two men who tried to import almost 600kg of cocaine but were thwarted during an ocean chase involving a Navy ship have been sentenced to a total of 28 years jail.
The Australian Federal Police said that on Monday (November 4) in the Supreme Court of Brisbane, one of the men, now aged 42, was sentenced to 15 years jail; the other man, now aged 48, was given 13 years jail. They had both pleaded guilty last month.
With time already served, they are both eligible for immediate parole, the AFP says.
The AFP says they were previously convicted by the Supreme Court and sentenced to 28 years and 25 years jail, respectively, in 2021; they were granted a re-trial after an appeal only for them to both change their pleas to guilty.
The pair, as well as a third man, were arrested in 2018 and 2019 during Operation Solarstrike, a multi-agency taskforce that took in the Queensland Joint Organised Crime Taskforce (QJOCTF) and Australian Border Force’s (ABF) Maritime Border Command.
Authorities had tracked the 42-year-old and an accomplice, now aged 59, in July 2018 as they travelled about 300km offshore in a high-powered inflatable boat to collect packages of cocaine dropped in the ocean from a larger ship.
A Royal Australian Navy (RAN) vessel tried unsuccessfully to intercept the inflatable boat as it returned to Queensland via northern NSW.
As the two men tried to evade the ship, they dumped their packages overboard but the Navy recovered 588kg of cocaine, worth $147m.
The men were arrested by Queensland Water Police when they returned to Australian territorial waters.
The 48-year-year old was arrested in June 2019 and the three were charged with importing commercial quantities of illegal drugs which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The 59-year-old pleaded guilty in 2020 and sentenced to 13 years jail with a non-parole period of four years and three months.
REMINDER
AFP Detective Superintendent Adrian Telfer says they, and their partner agencies, remain determined to stop illegal drugs from entering the country.
Queensland Police Service Detective Acting Superintendent David Briese, from the Drug and Serious Crime Group, Crime and Intelligence Command, said Operation Solarstrike was a multi-agency success.
Commander Maritime Border Command (MBC) Rear Admiral Brett Sonter says the case is a timely reminder of their capabilities.
“… this outcome sends a clear message to would-be criminals: do not attempt to exploit Australia’s border. Your efforts will be detected and you can expect to face the full force of the law,” he says
SUPPORT
The following services provide people with access to support and information:
- For free and confidential advice about alcohol and other drug treatment services, call the National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline on 1800 250 015.
- You can access free 24/7 drug and alcohol counselling online at www.counsellingonline.org.au
- For information about drug and alcohol addiction treatment or support, go to www.turningpoint.org.au
