Australian Man Charged With Smuggling Cocaine Inside Marine Engines
Cocaine smugglers often go to exceptional lengths to conceal their goods from customs officers. The drug has been tethered inside sea chests, bolted into machine tools, dissolved and soaked into clothing, packed in banana boxes and tucked into reefer containers, all to reach the most lucrative global markets. A Sydney man now stands accused of attempting to smuggle cocaine into Australia in a uniquely maritime fashion: hidden inside a pair of marine engines.
In October 2024, Australian Border Force officers inspected a consignment arriving in Brisbane from the United States. The shipment consisted of two crated marine engines, with signs of age and previous use. The officers found plastic-wrapped bricks inside the crankcase of each engine, packed between lobes of the crankshaft and covered in grease. Testing confirmed that they contained cocaine, so the AFP officers removed all 140 kilos of the drugs, replaced the bricks with fakes, and then put the shipment back in motion.
On November 14-15, the crates were moved to a property in Wongawallan, about 25 miles south of Brisbane. According to the Australian Federal Police, a suspect from Sydney traveled to the property on November 15 and - along with a second suspect - retrieved some of the fake bricks from within one of the marine engines.
The AFP raided multiple properties on November 17 and recovered evidence; the suspect from Sydney has now been charged of attempting to possess a commercial quantity of smuggled cocaine - an offense that carries a penalty of up to life in prison in Australia.
“Criminals are motivated by greed and are indifferent to the harm their actions cause. This amount of cocaine could have equated to about 700,000 street level deals,” AFP Detective Superintendent Adrian Telfer said. “The AFP and its law enforcement partners are committed to disrupting and dismantling criminal operations which look to bring harm to our people and communities."
It is the second time that a suspect has been charged in connection with this smuggling scheme. In April, prosecutors brought similar charges against a Gold Coast resident who was also allegedly present during the attempt to recover the fake drugs.