A drug syndicate plot to smuggle large quantities of liquid methamphetamine under the cover of shipments of maple syrup and canola oil was unraveled Thursday, the Associated Press reported.
Law enforcement agencies from Canada, Australia and New Zealand have reportedly worked together to crack down on the multi-billion dollar scheme and arrest the suspects. APs.
Canadian authorities reportedly found nearly three tons of liquid meth smuggled in 180 canola oil bottles destined for Australia in January. Police said they secretly exchanged drugs for harmless packages and alerted Australian officials. Australian police later tracked the shipment and two subsequent shipments that arrived in May and June and arrested six men on suspicion of smuggling. (Related: CBP K9 Seizes Over $4 Million in Drugs Within Brussels Sprouts Shipment)
Australian Customs officers performing an X-ray inspection of a truckload of containers at the Customs Container Facility in Melbourne, Australia. (William West/AFP via Getty Images)
New Zealand police have also reportedly arrested and charged syndicate members in another smuggling case in which nearly three-quarters of the methamphetamine was hidden in a shipment of maple syrup, according to the Associated Press. This is the largest amount of methamphetamine seized at the New Zealand border.
“Unfortunately, Australia’s insatiable appetite for illegal drugs has made Australia a lucrative market for organized crime,” Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Bob Hill said in a statement quoted by the newspaper. .
“International drug trafficking and organized crime groups are wreaking havoc and damage to communities around the world,” New Zealand Police Commissioner Andrew Koster told The Associated Press. “The best opportunity to destroy, intercept and keep our communities safe is by working with other agencies and other nations.”
