Record Cocaine Bust in Queensland: $500M Seized from Disabled Boat

In an unprecedented drug operation in Australia, authorities have successfully seized a staggering 2.3 tonnes of cocaine from a stranded boat near the Queensland coast. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) confirmed the historic bust, which has an estimated street value of A$760 million ($490 million; £388 million), potentially leading to 11.7 million individual drug transactions. Eleven men and two juveniles were taken into custody, including individuals connected with the Comanchero outlaw motorcycle gang. This operation, dubbed Operation Tyrrendor, is part of ongoing efforts to dismantle criminal syndicates linked to the gang, with intelligence indicating plans to import illegal substances into the country. The seized drugs, found aboard a fishing vessel that encountered mechanical issues, underline the lengths to which organized crime will go to smuggle narcotics into Australia.

Australian authorities achieved a monumental victory against drug trafficking on Saturday night, seizing 2.3 tonnes of cocaine from a malfunctioning boat off Queensland's coast. The $500 million haul marks the largest cocaine seizure in Australian history and involves a total of eleven arrests linked to a criminal syndicate affiliated with the notorious Comanchero motorcycle gang.

Police made the discovery after tracking a fishing boat, recently acquired by a 35-year-old man, during Operation Tyrrendor, launched last month. The vessel was transporting cocaine from a larger mothership when it broke down about 18 kilometers from K'gari's northeastern tip. Upon interception, authorities found 51 bales of cocaine, each weighing 40 kilograms, totaling 2.34 tonnes. The arrests included not just those aboard the vessel, but also individuals waiting onshore and others found at a fast-food restaurant and a traffic stop. All suspects have been charged with conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of cocaine, carrying a potential life imprisonment penalty, highlighting the significant threat posed by organized crime in Australia.