Queensland Police have arrested and charged more than a dozen people alleged to be involved in an interstate drug syndicate, after detectives intercepted a plane outside Brisbane.
The light aircraft left Melbourne and landed at Redcliffe Airport, outside Brisbane, around 2:00pm on Monday.
North Brisbane Criminal Investigation Branch Detective Senior Sergeant Ken Rogers said two people were inside the plane and were met on the tarmac by a third person, who had arrived in a 4WD.
“The three men then stood on the tarmac and conducted what appeared to be a drug transaction,” he said.
“It was at that time that specialist units swooped, moved in, apprehended and took all three men into police custody.”
Police said a search found about $1 million in cash contained in two boxes in the rear section of the plane.
Detectives also searched the 4WD and said they located five large sports bags containing cannabis in cryovac packaging, known as cannabis bricks, weighing about 120 kilograms, with an estimated street value of $3.5 million.
Officers then carried out simultaneous raids on homes, business premises and a number of storage sheds across north Brisbane.
“These raids yielded further drugs and more cash,”…
