Overview

• Investigators say the container’s legitimate cargo had been delivered when officers accessed the seemingly empty box and exposed a hidden cavity holding cocaine worth about A$164–165 million.
• Police report finding 506 one‑kilogram blocks concealed behind a false wall and covered with lead sheeting, along with tools allegedly intended to cut into the compartment.
• A 38-year-old Hillsdale forklift driver and a 25-year-old Oyster Bay dock worker were arrested at the facility, and a 42-year-old Caringbah forklift driver was detained during a related home search with A$200,000 in cash.
• Authorities say another A$130,000 was seized at a linked property, and the older two men are charged with importing a commercial quantity of cocaine while the third faces a proceeds-of-crime charge.
• Magistrates remanded the 25- and 38-year-olds in custody and granted conditional bail to the 42-year-old, with all three due back in court on Oct 29 as inquiries continue into the shipment sent from Europe.