Nine men have been charged for their alleged links to a syndicate behind a large-scale conspiracy to import tonnes of illicit drugs into Victoria and traffic drugs around the country.
The ten-month investigation, Operation Bruce Cremorne, was run by the Victorian Joint Organised Crime Taskforce (JOCTF), which includes the AFP, Victoria Police, Australian Border Force (ABF) and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC).
The alleged offenders, aged between 31 and 72, have been charged with a range of offences relating to the alleged conspiracy and the interstate trafficking of illicit drugs, and seven are facing a maximum penalty of life imprisonment if convicted.
Operation Bruce Cremorne was launched in late May 2025, when four crew members were rescued after a commercial trawler sank off the coast of Port Albert, Victoria.
The JOCTF began monitoring the movements of the crew due to suspicions about why the vessel had travelled out to sea in bad weather without equipment usually required for commercial fishing.
Over the following months, police undertook surveillance of multiple local boat crews suspected to be linked to a drug importation syndicate.
It is alleged the syndicate made multiple attempts to travel into Bass Strait to launch suspected 'daughter vessels' to travel to a predetermined drop zone to receive significant quantities of illicit drugs from a 'mother ship' passing through Australian waters.
The syndicate was unsuccessful in alleged attempts to facilitate any such transfer and no importation occurred.
The Victorian JOCTF executed rolling search warrants over the past month across the Victorian suburbs of Morwell, Glenroy, Cranbourne, Cranbourne West, Cranbourne South and Greenvale. A further warrant was executed in the Sydney suburb of St Clair.
As part of this sweeping operational activity, eight men were arrested in Victoria and one man was arrested in Sydney. Seven of the men were arrested for their alleged roles in a conspiracy to import illicit drugs, while two were solely charged for their alleged involvement in illicit drug trafficking activity.
Four of the men were also charged in connection to the seizure of 30kg of methamphetamine by the WA JOCTF in Perth on 11 August, 2025, and the seizure of 41kg of cocaine by the Victoria Police Viper Taskforce at Barnawartha in regional Victoria days later (13 August, 2025).
It will be alleged these seizures in Western Australia and Victoria are connected to the criminal syndicate, which exploited trucking industry connections to facilitate the movement of illicit drugs between Australian states.
Investigations into the international syndicate behind an alleged mothership attempting to drop illicit cargo into Australian waters remain ongoing and further arrests have not been ruled out.
AFP Detective Superintendent Ray Imbriano said an all-agency approach and coordination was necessary to stop syndicates from carrying out plans to import illicit drugs into Australian communities.
"Organised criminals are sending their business to our shores because of the insatiable Australian demand for illicit commodities and the community's willingness to pay top dollar for them - it is as simple as that,'' Det Supt Imbriano said.
"These are not harmless substances, and apart from the health consequences, drug importations fuel violence between rival gangs in our suburbs. This violence too often leaves innocent Australians caught in the crosshairs.
"I want to thank members of the AFP, Victoria Police and ABF for their continued dedication to dismantling organised crime syndicates that cause high harm to our country and our region.
"At-sea transfers are dangerous, and criminals using this smuggling method risk both their freedom and their lives. It also risks the lives of first responders, who too often have had to save the lives of crew involved in drug retrieval."
Victoria Police Detective Superintendent Dave Cowan said: "as emphasised by police many times before, there is absolutely a level of concern that the appetite for drugs in Australia is so high that we become a favourable location for these organised crime syndicates".
"As is startlingly clear, the damage caused by the use of illicit substances ripples throughout the community, and it does not just affect those using the drug. There have been many lives forever changed and ruined simply by their sheer misfortune of encountering someone who chose to take an illegal substance," Det Supt Cowan said.
"Victoria Police, alongside our law enforcement and intelligence partners, will be relentless in targeting the highest-level organised crime groups trafficking, importing and distributing illicit drugs in the community."
ABF Commander Clinton Sims said the ABF continued to face down threats posed by transnational and serious organised crime groups and worked closely with law enforcement partners.
"The ABF is resolute in making the border a hostile environment for criminal syndicates attempting to profit from Australia's illicit drug market," Commander Sims said.
"To counter this reprehensible trade, ABF officers work tirelessly alongside our domestic and international counterparts, working in challenging environments to protect our community.
"Intercepting criminals and dismantling their networks demonstrates the ABF's commitment to safeguard the border and protect one of our most vital strategic national assets."
ACIC National Manager Jason Halls emphasised the importance of strong cross agency collaboration and the impact of the operation.
"The ACIC is committed to targeting these networks and collecting and sharing intelligence with law enforcement partners to support the disruption of the importation of illicit drugs, which cause significant harm to Australia," National Manager Hall said.
CHARGES
A Greenvale man, 34, has been charged with:
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of border-controlled drugs, namely 1.8 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Attempting to import a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Attempting to possess a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.5(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 30kg of methamphetamine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 41kg of cocaine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 3.5 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth); and
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 890kg of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and sections 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
He has been remanded in custody to next appear before the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July, 2026.
A Glenroy man, 63, was charged with:
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of border-controlled drugs, namely 1.8 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
- Attempting to import a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
- Attempting to possess a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.5(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 30kg of methamphetamine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
- Traffick a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 41kg of cocaine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 3.5 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth); and
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 890kg of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and sections 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
He has been remanded in custody to next appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July, 2026.
A Morwell man, 38, was charged with:
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of border-controlled drugs, namely 1.8 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Committing an indictable offence while on bail, contrary to section 30B of the Bail Act 1977 (Vic); and
- Possessing a firearm as a prohibited person, contrary to section 5(1) of the Firearms Act 1996 (Vic).
He has been remanded in custody to next appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July 2026.
A Morwell man, 44, was charged with:
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of border-controlled drugs, namely 1.8 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Committing an indictable offence while on bail, contrary to section 30B of the Bail Act 1977 (Vic),
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 3.5 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Possessing a drug of dependence, namely cannabis, contrary to section 73 of the Drugs Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Vic); and
- Possessing a drug of dependence, namely heroin, contrary to section 73 of the Drug Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Vic).
He has been remanded in custody to next appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July, 2026.
A Cranbourne West man, 45, was charged with:
- Attempting to import a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Attempting to possess a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.5(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 30kg of methamphetamine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 3.5 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth); and
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 890kg of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and sections 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
He has been remanded in custody to next appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July, 2026.
A Cranbourne South man, 38, was charged with:
- Attempting to import a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Attempting to possess a border-controlled drug, namely 600kg of cocaine, contrary to sections 11.1(1) and 307.5(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth),
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 3.5 tonnes of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and section 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).,
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 890kg of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and sections 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth); and
- Possessing an unregistered firearm, contrary to section 6A(2) of the Firearms Act 1996 (Vic).
He has been released on bail to next appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July, 2026.
A Glen Huntly man, 72, was charged with:
- Conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, namely 890kg of cocaine, contrary to section 11.5(1) and sections 307.1(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth); and
- Possessing an unregistered handgun, contrary to section 7B(1) of the Firearms Act 1996 (Vic); and
He has been released on bail to next appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July, 2026.
A Glenroy man, 52, was charged with:
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 30kg of methamphetamine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth); and
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 41kg of cocaine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth).
He has been released on bail to next appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on 28 July, 2026.
A St Clair man, 31, was charged with:
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 30kg of methamphetamine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth); and
- Trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, namely 41kg of cocaine, contrary to section 302.2(1) of the Criminal Code.
He has been remanded in custody to next appear before Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on 20 May, 2026.
