Drug syndicate cracked, say police
Police have cracked an alleged drug syndicate smuggling methylamphetamines from NSW after charging a ringleader with large-scale cannabis dealing.
The 51-year-old East Perth man was on bail on cannabis charges when allegedly caught doing deals to import methylamphetamines to WA through the mail.
Organised crime squad detectives launched a sting on the suspected cross-border network after the man was allegedly caught with more than 13kg of cannabis and $100,000 in August.
He and a 29-year-old man from NSW are accused of conspiring to post big amounts of methylamphetamine to WA.
Police claim syndicate members also carried in smaller amounts of the drug, which first came from China.
The NSW man was arrested last month soon after he arrived in WA. Police arrested four other people after raiding a Perth hotel room and another two will be charged by summons.
The two operations netted 15kg of cannabis, more than 600g of methylamphetamine and $230,000 and led to 33 charges.
Det-Insp. Chris Adams, from the serious and organised crime division, said targeting drug syndicates in WA was a major focus of efforts to prevent damage from illicit drugs.
"The objective was to implement our organised crime containment strategy on the 51-year-old's unlawful activities and identify and dismantle his NSW drug syndicate," he alleged.
Det-Insp. Adams said dealing illicit drugs started a domino effect of other crimes, from burglaries to drug-fuelled violence.
"By targeting … syndicates pushing the drugs we stop those secondary events," he said.
The organised crime squad is working with agencies around Australia and overseas to identify "larger players" importing drugs into WA. They are also targeting local dealers, which helps identify drug network kingpins.
The 29-year-old faces three charges, including attempting to supply the 51-year-old with methylamphetamine and conspiracy to provide a prohibited drug with intent to sell or supply. He is in custody and due in court in May.
The WA man faces several serious drug charges, including possessing a prohibited drug with intent to sell or supply, and was remanded in custody until May.
