The plane that spurred the downfall of one of Australia's largest drug syndicates was sold at auction in May. Coster said Thursdays bust was a significant result by the National Organised Crime Group to combat community hard caused by meth. The devices organically circulated and grew in popularity among criminals, who were confident of the legitimacy of the app because high-profile organised crime figures vouched for its integrity. However, in 2010, as the Australian branch of the syndicate started to unravel, Ayik fled the country. The arrests and seizures were part of Operation Baystone, which began after 2.7kg of methamphetamine was found in the Perth suburb of Stirling in December last year. Further enquiries into the intercepted meth over the last few days saw several search warrants being carried out across south Auckland on Tuesday evening, resulting in the arrest of six people aged between 27 and 36. The phones were stripped down - they couldn't even make calls, access the internet or send emails. Williams said $3.7m in assets had been seized, along with 20 ounces of methamphetamine, large bags of cannabis, multiple kilograms of iodine, four firearms, 14 vehicles, including two marine vessels, mobile phones and more than $1m in cash. Five members face charges over a fatal bikie brawl at Sydney Airport last year. 'I have amessage for the criminals targetingAustralia and Australia's interests- the AFP will be relentless,' Mr Kershaw said. Comancheros in WA: New details emerge about drug bust which led to arrest of former member Mohammed Oueida. SEE THE MAP Brayden Heslehurst and Marcel Baum From Whyalla they travelled to Forrest, a popular refuelling stop more than 1100km east of Perth, near the South Australian border. "I did say this as this was the defence I was running," he wrote in a letter from Acacia Prison. The Turkish-Australian holds dual citizenship, and despite being included in the NSW police most wanted persons list and having an Interpol arrest warrant against his name, Turkey does not extradite its citizens. But you know, this isn't over. About five kilograms of the drug was found hidden in a car being transported to Perth from Sydney, while a search of 13 premises in Perth overnight turned up a further 210g. Pictured: ammunition seized by police, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the AFP operation, known as Operation Ironside, had struck a 'heavy blow' against criminals, Hakan Ayik (pictured) gave police extensive access to the world's criminal underworld throughencrypted communications app AN0M. 'The operation puts Australia at the forefront of the fight against criminals who peddle in human misery and ultimately, it will keep our communities and Australians safe,' he said on Tuesday. How Boris Johnson's Partygate tormentor Sue Gray is now enmeshed in her own row - as it is DAN HODGES: This grubby Sue Gray recruitment annihilates all pretence that Sir Keir Starmer is a man of Matt Hancock discussed 'deploying' new virus variant to 'frighten the pants off everyone' as former Health 'So many dead. Further charges against more people have not been ruled out. New Zealand Customs staff, Armed Offenders Squad members, Asset Recovery Unit and Police Dog Section staff assisted police with the searches. "Joseph Micalizzi," he said, a large sports bag hanging from his shoulder. National Organised Crime Group acting Detective Inspector John Brunton said police were determined to target the leaders and key members of these criminal gangs involved in illicit drug distribution, intimidation and violence. Never seen anything like it': Medics and care workers hits back at Matt Hancock by revealing Rishi Sunak told Matt Hancock that Dominic Cummings' time in Downing Street was 'a nightmare', new WhatsApp Madonna's Skid Row brother: For years the superstar, 64, was accused of shunning him. Its bits and bobs are now scattered across his verandah and the tail and fuselage sit in a backyard in Perth's north, a dire reminder of the plane that once sat in the middle of Australia's own war on drugs and that changed law enforcement forever. This is a long way from over.'. He has since been spotted in Cyprus, Spain and Dubai, with Australian authorities suspecting he is the mastermind behind a massive drug lab in India capable of exporting tonnes of methamphetamine around the world. Pasilika Naufahu is on trial for drug, money laundering and organised crime charges. 'I can't comment on what's happening overseas at the moment, but I think I could probably assure everyone that the AFP and its partners are definitely exploiting the Ironside information, and the networks that we've identified, and we're actively targeting some of these Comanchero members offshore,' Superintendent McArthur said. In 2018, as part of Operation Nova, police detectives from the National Organised Crime Group covertly filmed a drug deal involving the Comancheros motorcycle gang. Weve got a newsletter for everyone. It was March 5, 2008. Manukau District Court documents seen by Stuff allege five men participated in an organised criminal group with the shared objective of obtaining material benefits from the possession of methamphetamine for supply. It follows the first phase of Operation Cincinnati in October when 26 people were arrested and kilos of drugs was seized, along with multiple firearms and more than $10 million in assets. "The users believed their Anom devices were protected from law enforcement by the shield of impenetrable encryption.". Nationwide News Pty Ltd 2023. As the Aztec dived towards the runway at Jandakot, 20 kilometres south of Perth, Santos' only passenger tattooed 20-something-year-old Australian-Italian Joseph Micalizzi was finally waking up from his 15-hour drug-fuelled slumber. 'This comes from the number of significant arrests. The investigation, dubbed Operation Weirton, had been looking at a criminal syndicates alleged links to importation of controlled Class A drugs into the country, Coster said. 'And it isour intention that they are lookingover their shoulder, because our law enforcement agencies and thepartnerships we have around theworld are bearing down upon them,' he said. Had we not made this seizure, those communities would have continued to suffer, and the individuals involved in this offending would continue to profit from the destruction with no regard for those they have affected. 'THEY ARE COMPROMISED, LIARS AND YOUR DATA IS RUNNING VIA USA'. Operation Trojan Shield saw the FBI create a closed encrypted company, called Anom, to fill this void, allowing investigators to eavesdrop on criminal communications about drug trafficking and money laundering activities across the globe. The covert surveillance led to the termination of dozens of search warrants on Monday and a swathe of arrests putting a heavy dent in the criminal drug trade here and preventing the Comancheros earning millions of dollars from narcotics. It involved three major organised crime investigations here targeting the importation, sale and supply of class-A drugs, as well as money-laundering activities. 'He's (Ayik) essentially leveraged his position of trust in the underworld to push this platform and that's what generated its success. Wednesdays search warrants marked the second termination phase of Operation Cincinnati, which saw 26 people arrested and kilos of drugs, multiple firearms and more than $10 million in assets seized in October. As officers searched the black sports bag, they uncovered nearly $8 million worth of drugs. We will abolish superannuation tax: Shadow treasurer, Bankman-Fried can have flip phone on bail, US proposes, Woman charged over pursuit through suburbs in stolen ute, Man to face court over death of teenage motocyclist, NSWs new hired gun in heist on WAs hard-earned GST cash, Victoria to dump minor offence reverse-onus bail test. Users could buy phone handsets costing between $1,500 and $2,500 from what has been described as underground distributors. It's GRAYGATE! Through the covert operation, detectives allegedly uncovered 21 murder plots, gun distribution and mass drug trafficking, withmafia bosses,bikies, and reality TV stars arrested and charged. Why? Police have arrested 12 people, including senior members of the Comancheros and Rebels gangs, as part of an operation targeting the drug trade. About $500,000 in cash was located during the search warrants, along with a number of illegal firearms, including three pistols, police said. (NSW Police) NSW Police arrested suspects related to drug offences as part of Operation Ironside. But intelligence information gleaned from the police operation revealed the plan to investigators and police swooped. But the way journalism is funded is changing and we need your help to sustain local newsrooms. He had established his own flying company, Santos Aviation, in 2006 and bought his American-made Aztec a year later with a generous cash donation from a family friend. Then known as Joseph Hakan Ayik, the Sydney bikie associate and gym junkie fled Australia in 2010 to avoid arrest over a $230 million heroin importation. Coster thanked Customs for its exceptional profiling of shipments from high-risk countries. "Someone told me there was a story behind it, and then I sort of had an idea that that was the one that I vaguely remembered.". The near year-long operation came to a climax on Sunday and Monday when detectives swarmed on multiple properties across Broadbeach Waters, Gaven, Tamborine, Rochdale, Steiglitz, Cleveland, Holland Park, Capalaba, Caboolture, Mount Nathan and Rockhampton. ANoM's website, which was only deleted about 10am on Tuesday, made the technology sound bulletproof. Acting Detective Inspector John Brunton outlines a major police operation targeting MDMA distribution (Video first published on October 29, 2020). The incredible scheme - which is said to have been cooked up by an Australian Federal Police officer over beers with his mates from the FBI - has also resulted in hundreds of arrests overseas and uncovered 21 murder plots. Organised crime evolving 'rapidly' in NZ as borders become 'porous' to illicit trade - NZ Heral Gangs and guns: Police unveil operation targeting firearms and organised crime - NZ Herald. It was the biggest drug bust in WA history and a day law enforcement officers . Nationwide News Pty Ltd 2023. Police have arrested 12 people, including senior members of the Comancheros and Rebels gangs, as part of an operation targeting the drug trade. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group. Santos is eight years into a 15-year sentence and will tell anyone who listens he is innocent. Successful police operations like Trojan Shield also ensured organised crime groups "don't gain an asset base which they can use to corrupt government officials or port or airline workers, which can make their operations easier to undertake". Shit happens.". Not so shipshape! Mr Morrison said the AFP's covert mission was 'seeking to frustrate [the alleged criminals] in every link of the chain'. This is a high-value criminal sponsoring a criminal communications system,' Australian Federal Police Superintendent Jared Taggart told News Corp papers. An officer who identified himself as Detective Roy Morrish was standing at the forefront of the unit, motioning officers to unzip the large sports bag Micalizzi had loaded onto the cargo hold 15 hours prior. WEST Australian police have arrested the WA president of the Comanchero bikie gang and three associates after seizing 5.2kg of methamphetamine in a joint operation with NSW police. A 24-year-old Mount Gravatt East man charged with 17 offences including two counts of trafficking in dangerous drugs - serious organised crime, six counts of supplying dangerous drugs and one count of receiving or possessing property obtained from trafficking or supplying. 'I expect a significant number of alleged criminals to be arrested over the coming months,' Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw recently told a Senate estimates hearing. Former Bandito bikie Benjamin Joseph Thornton, 31, was arrested after police seized two mobile phones and a small quantity of cocaine. But until now, its role in one of the biggest law enforcement operations in Australian history has remained a mystery. There's obviously a lot more work to do, there's still a lot offshore who we're looking at as well,' National Anti-Gangs Squad, Detective Superintendent Jason McArthur, said. We provided the technical capability to decrypt those messages,' he said. Steve Milenkovski, 32, of Tuart Hill, Yavuz Ozan, 31, of Kogarah, NSW, and Hao Bi, 26, of East Perth, appeared in East Perth Magistrates Court charged with a range of offences related to the overnight raid. Officers from Strike Force Garlow found $3 million worth of methylamphetamine at a dilapidated drug lab on a rural property in Kulnura and arrested 2 men aged 48 and 35 who were allegedly making the drug ice and dealing in the proceeds of crime.Police also seized methylamphetamine oil, more than 20kg of precursor chemicals, drug manufacturing equipment and $220,000 in cash.It's understood the drugs were being made under an agreement between the Nomads and Comancheros. ", Witnesses sought following assault, Hastings"Police are seeking witnesses to an assault, International police operation: How the gangs were brought to their knees - NZ Herald. New Zealand Police began working with the FBI on the operation in January 2020 to monitor the communications of platform users here in New Zealand. Four men arrested in New Zealand's biggest drug bust have . It is being credited with catching underworld figures, mafia personalities and terror suspects planning not only major drug imports but cold blooded executions. It comes as there have been tonnes of drugs and hundreds of arrests overseas. But the ANoM phones were actually designed by the FBI and allowed Australian police to read the texts of organised crime figures. Operation Hoffman, a sting designed by Australia's most secretive and powerful law enforcement agency, the Australian Crime Commission, would topple a billion-dollar empire extending across two continents and send a drug lord into hiding. Wed, 16 June 2021 2:00AM The Comanchero Motorcycle Club New Zealand president feared he was about to be arrested eight months before a major police bust and also suspected police were bugging his phone, a jury has been told. The gear would then be cooked or cut if needed and distributed across the country using light planes like Santos', all while the Comancheros ensured the drugs and the syndicate's main actors would be protected as the enterprise's de-facto security arm. "There will be a lot of organised criminals looking at how they're communicating over devices and wondering if they're next.". A further 10 gang members and their associates have also been arrested in relation to their alleged roles in the network, which saw drugs and cash transported between the two cities, police said in a statement. Other eastern states-based bikie gangs the Finks and Rock Machine (formerly the Nomads) have established themselves in WA in the past 18 months. Australian, US, and European authorities carried out raids across the world in June, with 4,000 cops in Australia arresting 224 accused organised crime figures and seizing tonnes of drugs, millions in cash, and other contraband and luxury goods. The company was apparently based in famously neutral Switzerland and boasted of 'military grade encrypt and sanitise'. Inside the 'Aussie cartel': How nine 'baddest of the bad' How bikie drug gangs are 'infiltrating' airports and even Ukraine soldiers shoot down enemy drones with drones of their own, Wheel of Fortune contestant answers food puzzle wrong, Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, Pro-Ukrainian drone lands on Russian spy planes exposing location, 'Buster is next!' New details about a massive WA drug bust which led to the arrest of former Comanchero bikie Mohammed Oueida can be revealed for the first time. 'Sadly, criminal gangs are targetingAustralia because it is one of themost profitable countries in theworld to sell drugs, and for threeyears, this operation has been overt.'. Hayden Burber, 33,alleged treasurer of the South Australian Comanchero, Christian Taumoefolau, 31, allegedSergeant-at-Arms of the Victorian Comanchero, Eren Kaya, 28, alleged Sergeant-at-Arms from Victoria, Muhammed Topal,25, Victorian-based brother of high-ranking Comanchero figure Hasan Topal, Emmanuel Vamvoukais, 40, alleged sergeant-at-arms of the NSW South Coast, Elias Elchaar, 49, alleged national sergeant-at-arms of the Lone Wolf gang, The comments below have not been moderated, By Were working to restore it. The gang members are alleged to have worked with offshore criminal entities to import large quantities of methamphetamine and MDMA which was distributed across New Zealand. He is due to appear in Cleveland Magistrates Court on Tuesday. , updated It will also be alleged six vehicles were either stolen or used to commit an offence including two cars, a motorcycle, truck, trailer and jet ski worth a combined $230,000. Police are making good progress dismantling his alleged empire of organised crime. UN states finally agree deal to protect high seas. Subscribe to 7NEWS Australia for the latest news video https://7news.link/YTSubscribeConnect with Seven News onlineVisit https://7news.com.au7NEWS Podcast http://smarturl.it/7NewsDailyFacebook https://www.facebook.com/7NewsAustraliaTwitter https://twitter.com/7NewsAustraliaInstagram https://www.instagram.com/7newsaustralia/ 7NEWS combines the trusted and powerful news brands including Sunrise, The Morning Show, The Latest, and 7NEWS.com.au, delivering unique, engaging and continuous coverage on the issues that matter most to Australians. For more than 18 months, Anom's criminal users unknowingly communicated on the system operated by FBI agents. LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) Dozens of people were arrested, and more than 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine and nearly $16 million was seized in the Southern California area amid a nationwide operation . Police claim Milenkovski is the president of the nascent WA chapter of the Comancheros and was in the process of establishing the club in the state. Australia's biggest ever police bust has seen not only seen the arrests of the Who's Who of the globalcriminal underworld, but yielded an extraordinary haul of 3.77 tonnes of drugs, $45 million in cash, guns, luxury cars, motorbikes and watches. Police said they had seized drugs some of which had been packaged ready for sale along with more than $200,000 in cash and a shotgun. Former Bachelorette star Samuel Minkin, who appeared on Becky and Elly Miles' season of the dating show, was charged with possessing a large commercial quantity of cannabis after police stopped a van in Byron Bay last month. More charges are expected to be laid as Australian Federal Police work their way through the 25 million messages intercepted by the encrypted app. "I saw this aeroplane come up and I just bought it out of curiosity," Nevan Pavlinovic said. One of the operations - dubbed Operation Van - specifically targeted the transnational organised crime group linked to the Comancheros. The president of the Comancheros and another member have pleaded guilty to part of their alleged involvement in a large scale money laundering and drug operation. AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw said the alleged syndicate included 'someof the most dangerous criminals toAustralia'. Three years ago, Australia Federal Policeidentified Ayik as a key influencer to successfully distribute the encrypted AN0M devices due to his high status in the criminal underworld. New Zealands previous largest drug bust was in 2016, when 501kg of methamphetamine was seized in Northland, including 449kg from a camper van and 52kg found buried at Ninety Mile Beach. Kiwi police working closely alongside international law enforcement agencies and spy networks revealed yesterday they have been secretly intercepting criminals' private communications on an encrypted digital platform built by the FBI. "They are establishing themselves here in WA.". Mr Kershaw said detectives witnessed associates 'turning on each other' and doing business behind each other's backs. They were unaware it was run by FBI agents and the Australian Federal Police who could read their every word. Twelve people have been arrested, including senior leaders of the Comancheros and Rebels gangs, after a major drug bust operation on Wednesday. Now, a man has purchased the same Aztec Piper which brought the drugs to WA.Credit: As Bankstown pilot Jamieson Santos was preparing to land his twin-engined 1970s Piper Aztec at a busy airport on the outskirts of Perth a dozen grim-faced police officers were waiting on the hot tarmac. They allegedly used the app, secretly developed by the FBI, to message each other around the world, unaware everything they said and did was being intercepted by FBI special agents and the Australian Federal Police. Acting detective inspector John Brunton from the national organised crime group said police are determined to target the leaders and key members of gangs that are involved in drug dealing. But they're not okay. But its best feature - and for most of its users, the worst - wasn't promoted in its marketing material. We want to reduce the harm these gangs are causing in our communities, he said. Drug kingpin and Comancheros bikie associate Hakan Ayik has spent the last decade on the run from Australian authorities after fleeing the country in 2010. Ninja Warrior 2017 contestant Sopiea Kong was among those arrested. Senior bikies and mafia figures were tricked into buying hi-tech phones that would supposedly let them messages one another, free of police snooping. As officers searched the black sports bag, they uncovered nearly $8 million worth of drugs.
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