The Indonesian navy has seized a boat carrying 1.1 tonnes of the drug ice, and says it is the same type of vessel used to transport a similar-sized shipment to Western Australia last month.
Key points:
- The Singaporean-flagged vessel Sunrise Glory was boarded in Indonesian waters
- It is believed the boat my have links to the same ship seized at Geraldton harbour in December
- The 1.1 tonnes of ice was packed into 41 sacks and hidden among food supplies
A shipment of more than 1.2 tonnes of methamphetamine was seized at Geraldton harbour shortly before Christmas.
It was hailed as Australia’s largest ever drugs seizure.
Police in Australia valued that haul at $1 billion and said at the time they were monitoring the “mother ship” used to bring the drugs into Australian waters.
It is not clear whether this latest vessel is the “mother ship” or another ship-to-shore transport used in the drug operation.
In this latest seizure, the Singaporean-flagged vessel Sunrise Glory was boarded in Indonesian waters between Singapore and Batam Island.
The boat was boarded by the Indonesian navy under suspicion of illegal fishing.
When officers searched the 70-tonne vessel they found more than one tonne of ice in the hold, packed into 41 sacks and hidden beneath food supplies.
“Allegedly the boat has been unload [sic] one tonnes of narcotics in Australia, but the local authority did not manage to capture them,” said Brigadier-General Anjan Putra from Indonesia’s National Narcotics Board (BNN).
A team from the BNN, the Indonesian Navy and customs has been looking for the boat since early December.
They received a tip-off to look for a fishing boat loaded with narcotics.
“The joint task force searched for the boat, and they found it but the boat did not enter Indonesian waters, but they they kept sailing from Andaman Sea and heading south to Australia, outside Indonesian territory,” said General Putra.
The boat is being held at Batam Island.
