A 26-year-old man has been sentenced to nine years and six months’ jail after being found guilty of four charges relating to the importation of methamphetamine and ephedrine.
The man was sentenced in Melbourne County Court on the 22 August 2016 on:
- two counts of importing a commercial quantity of a border controlled precursor, namely ephedrine, contrary to 307.11 of the Criminal Code
- one count of importing a marketable quantity of a border controlled drug, namely methamphetamine, contrary to 307.2 of the Criminal Code, and
- one count of importing a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug, namely methamphetamine, contrary to 307.1 of the Criminal Code.
In 2014, officers at the then Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (now Australian Border Force) Melbourne Air Cargo Facility targeted several packages for examination.
On 27 August 2014, officers found 5.9 kilograms of ephedrine concealed within rolls of wallpaper sent in two packages from Malaysia.
On 5 September 2014, officers found about 420 grams of methamphetamine concealed within audio microphones in a package sent from China.
On 24 September 2014, officers found another package from China, which contained about 1.3 kilograms of methamphetamine concealed within a hotdog maker.
Australian Border Force (ABF) Acting Assistant Commissioner Investigations Anthony Seebach said the significant jail term this man received highlighted the risk people were taking when they attempted to import illegal drugs in the mail.
“Some people mistakenly believe that they will evade detection by importing small quantities of these dangerous drugs in the mail,” Acting Assistant Commissioner Seebach said.
“The ABF stops parcels containing a variety of drug quantities each and every day.
“As this case shows, if we catch you importing these substances you could face serious jail time.”
