Slot Machines Used by Australian Gang to Ship Drugs, Weapons From The US

The term one-armed brigand lately took on a more or less different import in Australia. Two Melbourne men, believed to be members of a large crook organization, were apprehended by the Aussie Federal Police (AFP) for their alleged involvement inward smuggling firearms and drugs into the rural area secret inwards slot machines.

On August 16, according to a printing press free past the AFP, Operation Chandrila culminated inward the dread of Ralph Sapin, a 37-year-old from the Melbourne suburb of Tarneit, and Sime Govic, a 30-year-old occupier of Altona North. This important developing was made possible by the change of important entropy from US Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to the AFP plunk for inwards June.

The financial statement from the AFP revealed that the authorities had uncovered “suspicious” packages containing components of different firearms upon inspecting shipments that arrived inwards Australia. That led to an investigation that found quaternary attempts to illicitly importee small-arm components and drugs into the rural area o'er a span of ternion months.

Gambling Their Lives With Slot Machines

During the capital punishment of a lookup warrant, officials from the AFP found grounds Govic wouldn’t be able to refute. They discovered forgery identification documents and 100 grams of methamphetamine cleverly tucked forth within slot machines and electronic games, as intimately as live ammo in his abode and vehicle.

Alleged members of a Melbourne-based malefactor mob hold been charged inward link to a series of alleged attempted small-arm imports, as voice of an investigating 'tween the AFP and the United States Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). https://t.co/TLqpLhttAB

— AFP (@AusFedPolice) August 17, 2023

Truganini’s commercial message storage warehouse inward Brooklyn inward New South Wales was also subjected to a raid past the officers. There, they found a stash of just about 20-30 kg of a do drugs precursor, a term describing a substance known for making illegal drugs.

In addition, they seized a go mag and a package of .223 ammunition. While non solely intentional for the purpose, the .223 put up follow used inwards AR-15 semi-automatic rifles.

As a resultant of the raids and the evidence, Govic faces accusations of illegally importation firearms without a permit, unlawfully owning a firearm, ownership of drug-related items and falsifying official documents. Sapin has been indicted on charges of engaging inwards commercial-grade dose transactions, possessing forerunner chemicals and receiving stolen merchandise.

Both face upwardly to 10 years inwards prison. They’ve made their for the first time court of law appearances, but will yield later this twelvemonth to place upright trial.

Australia on Ice

Australian legislators are cracking down pat(p) on gambling, buying into cries that Aussies expend too much of their possess money on slots. Instead, they should focus their efforts almost solely on the illegal drug trade.

Recent drug usage data uncommitted through the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) confirms that Commonwealth of Australia possesses the highest per capita usage of methamphetamine, widely known as ice, across the globe. Among 24 leading countries, Australia topped the lean inwards per-capita sparkler consumption.

The ACIC reported a year agone on do drugs usage trends in Australia, based on tracking through wastewater monitoring. By the cease of 2021, ice, cocaine and MDMA (known as Ecstasy or Molly) controlled the house servant market.

At the same time, the written report suggests that the expenditure of heroin and cannabis witnessed a substantial decline during the lastly VI months of the year. However, during that same period, ice, cocain and MDMA usance “exceeded regional use for the first of all clip since Apr 2017.”