Australian police seize record $104 mln heroin shipment
The man was charged with importing and attempted possession of a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug
Australian police said on Saturday (October 16) they seized the largest heroin shipment ever detected in the country, worth an estimated A$140 million ($104 million), and arrested a Malaysian national over the importation of the illicit drug.
The 450-kg (990-pound) shipment - as heavy as a grand piano - was detected in a sea freight container of ceramic tiles sent from Malaysia and addressed to a Melbourne business, police said.
The police did not name the arrested man, a typical practice in Australia unless the police deem the identification of the suspect in the interest of a victim's family or the public.
The man was charged with importing and attempted possession of a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug. The maximum penalty is life imprisonment, the police said.