Father and Son Sentenced in Multi-Million Dollar Heroin Plot

Four men, including a father and son, were arrested, charged, and sentenced for their involvement in a multi-million dollar heroin import plot in Western Australia in 2021.

According to the Australian Federal Police, the father and son, both Malaysian nationals, attempted to cover up their involvement by calling police to warn them about the import of approximately 77kg, or around 170 pounds, of heroin. The drugs were imported into Western Australia via Perth inside industrial kitchen equipment, where they were intercepted by police and replaced with a “harmless substance” before being forwarded on to the original location as part of a police sting.

“Wooden crates containing the equipment with the substituted packages sat inside the warehouse unopened for a week, while the business was open and operating. Authorities had the premises under surveillance when three men arrived on 8 June, 2021, opened the containers, transferred the packages into black duffel bags, loaded them into their vehicle and drove away. Shortly after, police intercepted the vehicle in a car park in the nearby suburb of Coolbellup and found the black bags containing the substituted packages on the back seat. A West Australian father and son, then aged 47 and 25, were in the front seats of the car, while a man, then 24, from Burwood in New South Wales sat in the back seat. A few minutes after arresting the trio, police intercepted a blue Camry they had seen driving in convoy with the trio’s vehicle after it left the Bibra Lake premises,” police said.

Each of the four men was sentenced to between eight and 12 years prison. Credit: Australian Federal Police via Storyful