Three Sydney men have been charged and about 506kg of cocaine and $330,000 cash seized following a Multi Agency Strike Team (MAST) investigation into trusted insiders facilitating the importation of illicit drugs into Australia.
The MAST, made up of investigators from the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and NSW Police Force (NSWPF), works directly with law enforcement partners from the Australian Border Force (ABF), NSW Crime Commission (NSWCC), Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) and Australian Taxation Office (ATO), to target trusted insiders.
In April 2025, investigators established Strike Force Paiporta to target a criminal syndicate that allegedly had members working inside Sydney ports to facilitate the importation of commercial quantities of illegal drugs.
MAST investigators received intelligence that a group was allegedly planning to remove illicit drugs from an imported shipping container while it was stored at a sea freight facility in Sydney.
The shipping container had entered Australia with legitimate cargo, which was delivered and the seemingly empty shipping container returned to a storage area.
A Hillsdale man, 38, who worked as a forklift driver was observed moving shipping containers around the facility to access a specific shipping container which was later found to contain the cocaine, about 12.30am on Sunday (31 August, 2025).
A short time later police observed another man with a bag enter that shipping container.
MAST investigators entered the facility and arrested the man - a 25-year-old from Oyster Bay- as he exited the shipping container.
Police found a crowbar, an angle grinder, ear protection, portable lights and other hand tools in the container, which they allege the man was using to cut into a false wall at the rear of the shipping container.
Specialist crime scenes teams attended, removed the false wall and found 506 individual blocks of white powder in a cavity covered in lead sheeting, with the contents testing positive for cocaine.
This shipment has an estimated street value of more than $164 million and could have been sold in the community as 2,530,000 individual 0.2 gram street deals.
A short time later the Hillsdale man returned to the container and was also arrested by MAST investigators.
Both men were transported to St George Police station where they were formally charged with importing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely cocaine, contrary to section 307.1 of the Criminal Code (Cth).
They were also charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of cocaine, contrary to section 307.5 of the Criminal Code (Cth). The maximum penalty for these offences is life imprisonment.
A short time later investigators executed a search warrant at the Hillsdale man's home where a 42-year-old Caringbah man was intercepted as he left the property.
Investigators spoke to the man, who was found in possession of $200,000 in cash suspected of being the proceeds of crime.
Further inquiries established the Caringbah man also worked at a logistics company as a forklift driver.
The Caringbah man was subsequently charged with dealing with money believed to be proceeds of general crime, contrary to section 400.9(1AB) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
A second search warrant was executed at the home of the Oyster Bay man, where a further $130,000 in suspected proceeds of crime was located and seized.
All three men appeared before Sutherland Local Court yesterday (1 September 2025). The Hillsdale and Oyster Bay men were refused bail and are expected to appear at the Downing Centre Local Court on 29 October, 2025.
The Caringbah man was granted bail with strict conditions and is also expected to appear at the Downing Centre Local Court on 29 October, 2025.
While the shipping container was sent from Europe, inquiries into the source of the illicit drugs and anyone involved in the importation plot remain ongoing.
AFP Detective Superintendent Peter Fogarty said the AFP and its partners were determined to protect the community and prevent organised crime networks from importing illicit drugs and causing harm.
"Transnational serious organised crime groups routinely seek to exploit vulnerabilities at Australia's gateways to the world, and the AFP, alongside our partners, are committed to exposing these syndicates and bringing them before the courts," Det Supt Fogarty said.
"We will allege this syndicate was disciplined but was no match for the capabilities and tenacity of the MAST and its investigators.
"To anyone lured in by the false promise of riches from drug importations - these offences carry the potential of life in jail."
NSW Police Drug and Firearms Squad Commander, Detective Superintendent John Watson, said the MAST was proving to be a point of difference.
"The MAST combines Commonwealth and NSW law enforcement resources and intelligence, including officers with specialist knowledge," Det Supt Watson said.
"This significant seizure is proof that the multi-agency operation is disrupting transnational serious organised crime from infiltrating our shores."
The MAST has 41 full-time investigators and analysts from both Commonwealth and NSW law enforcement agencies, leveraging the capabilities, resources and legislative powers to investigate and target trusted insiders assisting transnational serious organised crime syndicates impacting NSW.
Transnational Serious Organised Crime and Trusted Insiders
Transnational serious organised crime (TSOC) groups are focused on finding 'a door' into Australia to import and move their illicit commodities.
A trusted insider is any person who, through their employment or association with a supply chain business, uses their access to goods, systems, or premises for malicious purposes to facilitate TSOC-related activities without law enforcement detection.
Trusted insiders are very valuable and highly sought by TSOC groups. They act as key enablers to compromise the supply chain and allow illicit goods into Australia, causing harm to NSW communities.
How the MAST approach is different to other law enforcement strategies?
The MAST aims to disrupt TSOC groups by targeting trusted insiders to 'close the door into Australia'. The MAST is commodity-agnostic and will target anyone who uses a position of trust within the supply chain to enable TSOC groups to bring illicit goods into Australia.
Police investigations typically focus on the illicit commodity, its origin, destination, or the person or groups involved. The MAST tracks how the illicit commodity was able to bypass border controls, identifies the vulnerabilities exploited, and closes the door to prevent future exploitation by TSOC groups.
