A Brisbane man is accused of importing more than $10 million worth of methamphetamine hidden inside hollowed-out timber pallets.
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Hamid Reza Khobdel appeared in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Friday charged with three counts of importing a commercial quantity of methamphetamine, as well as possessing methamphetamine and dealing with the proceeds of crime.
Khobdel was charged by the Queensland Joint Organised Task Force (QJOCTF), comprising the Australian Federal Police, Australian Border Force, Queensland Police and Department of Home Affairs.
He was observed taking possession of a container at a storage facility south of Brisbane in 2021 that was previously examined by authorities upon arrival at the city's port.
It contained 895 packages of tiles shipped from Thailand, with slats on the top of 24 timber pallets allegedly hollowed out and filled with bags of white powder, weighing 500 grams each.
Investigators say they removed nearly 83 kilograms of methamphetamine estimated to have a street value of $10.2 million from the shipment, before it was sent via controlled delivery to the self-storage facility where Khobdel was seen unloading the pallets into individual storage sheds.
The QJOCTF executed a search warrant at Khobdel's home in Shalier Park in September 2021, before he was arrested and charged in December.
AFP Detective Superintendent Helen Schneider said drug importers show a disregard for the misery they cause to Australians addicted by methamphetamine.
"Removing 83kg of methamphetamine from Australian streets ensures our communities are safer because the illicit drug trade facilitates a supply chain of violence and horror stretching all the way overseas," Det Supt Schneider said.
Khobdel is due to appear again in Brisbane Magistrates Court on April 1.
Australian Associated Press
