Packages marked “Fiji” were among a massive 373kg illicit drug haul discovered inside a heavy-duty diesel generator at Sydney’s Port Botany, in a major international smuggling investigation involving cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Australian Border Force (ABF) uncovered the shipment in early 2026 after routine x-ray screening flagged internal anomalies in a sea cargo consignment that had travelled from Mexico via Malaysia, falsely declared as industrial machinery.
AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Stuart Kimbell said the haul demonstrated the scale and complexity of modern drug trafficking operations.
“Criminal networks which attempt to bring harmful drugs into our country have no regard for the devastation these substances cause to individuals, families and communities.”
A forensic dismantling of the generator over nearly three days revealed a concealed compartment containing 106 one-kilogram blocks of cocaine, an additional 14kg of cocaine in vacuum-sealed packs, around 250kg of methamphetamine, 3kg of MDMA and 800g of the synthetic drug 2CB. The total estimated weight of the drugs was 373.8kg.
Authorities said the discovery highlights the increasingly sophisticated methods used by transnational criminal syndicates to evade border detection, with drugs hidden deep within heavy industrial equipment.
Investigators are now working to identify the network responsible for the shipment, which had travelled through multiple countries before arriving in Australia.
ABF Superintendent Jared Leighton said the seizure showed the strength of coordinated enforcement efforts.
“We know criminal syndicates invest significant time and resources into attempts to evade detection, and this seizure shows those efforts are no match against coordinated enforcement capabilities.”
The AFP confirmed that intelligence work is ongoing, with further inquiries aimed at identifying and dismantling those behind the importation.
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