Australian police reported Thursday that they dismantled a mafia that managed to introduce more than 1.2 tons of cocaine into the country, valued on the black market at around 1.214 billion dollars (1.096 billion euros), between February and July of this year.
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The mafia, known as ‘The Commission’, controlled the distribution of the drug through sophisticated hidden compartments inside their vehicles, as well as the prices of cocaine in Sydney, Australia’s most populous city, police in the Australian state of New South Wales reported.
The police operation, which began in April this year, has resulted in the arrest of seven men, as well as the seizure of 45 kilograms of cocaine, valued on the black market at more than 50 million dollars (45.7 million euros).
“Police have today dismantled one of the most allegedly dangerous groups seen in Sydney to date,” New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webb said in a statement.
The first step in the New South Wales Police operation to dismantle this mafia was last July when they arrested a 21-year-old man and seized 13 kilograms of cocaine, a stash valued at 13.5 million dollars (12.2 million euros).
On Wednesday, New South Wales Police carried out around twenty police searches in Sydney, resulting in the arrest of six men, aged between 25 and 34, as well as the seizure of 32 kilograms of cocaine, valued at around 37 million dollars (33.5 million euros).
Authorities also seized cash, firearms, electronic devices, ten vehicles, and other luxury items during the operation on Wednesday, according to the police statement.
New South Wales – the Australian jurisdiction with the highest per capita consumption of cocaine, according to authorities – as well as the rest of the country is an attractive destination for drug trafficking mafias due to the high price of the drug, where a gram of cocaine can exceed 200 dollars (183 euros).
EFE
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