Two extradited to Queensland over $300m Dutch drug conspiracy
Two Sydney men have been extradited to Queensland to face charges over a plot to import 850kg of MDMA worth more than $300 million.
The Australian Federal Police said the investigation began in 2019 when they tipped off Dutch authorities.
The AFP and Queensland police worked with officers in The Netherlands and Belgium to intercept the huge haul in the Dutch city of Rotterdam in August 2019.
Three months later, Dutch authorities raided 15 locations in those two countries earlier this month, uncovering drug labs disguised to look like barns from the outside.
Hundreds of kilos of hard and liquid drugs and other drug paraphernalia were concealed within fake walls, floors and ceilings of the buildings.
In all, 850kg of crystalline methylenedioxymethamphetamin or MDMA was seized, along with 548 litres of MDMA oil and 400 litres of precursor chemicals.
The AFP said that’s enough to make 15 million MDMA pills with a street value of more than $300 million.
Australia is a primary market in the global drug trade because locals are willing to pay a high price for substances that cost a mere fraction elsewhere.
An MDMA pill that costs 20 cents in Amsterdam will fetch $20-$30 on Australian streets.
