A Padstow man linked to organised crime has been sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment for coordinating the importation of 100kg of cocaine concealed in the cargo hold of a passenger plane.
The 44-year-old’s sentence follows the earlier jailing of three other men — including two so-called “trusted insiders” with access to restricted areas of Sydney Airport — who received a combined maximum of 15 years and nine months behind bars for their roles in the same criminal enterprise.
AFP Detective Acting Inspector Paul Watt said the agency and its partners remained determined to prevent organised crime groups from exploiting Australia’s airports and those entrusted with secure access.
“To anyone who works in an airport environment and may be lured by the false promise of a life of crime, these offences carry the potential of life imprisonment,” Det Acting Insp Watt said, describing Operation Lucian as evidence of the serious consequences offenders face.
“You are up against a well-resourced, capable and unrelenting opposition in the AFP and our partners. We will not allow criminals to make our communities less safe,” he added.
“Operation Lucian spared Australians from the violence, addiction and further criminality this shipment of cocaine would have brought to our shores.”
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) launched an investigation in October 2022 after an airline reported suspicious activity near the cargo area of a Sydney-bound flight departing Johannesburg, South Africa.
Investigators identified two airport workers with authorised access to restricted zones who were suspected of exploiting their positions to remove items from the cargo hold of an inbound aircraft, bypassing standard security screening processes.
After a 12-month probe, the AFP linked the Padstow man to the insiders and confirmed he was coordinating the planned importation in October 2023.
Officers moved in as members of the syndicate attempted to offload the cocaine — estimated to have a street value of $40 million — from the aircraft. The 44-year-old was arrested at Rushcutters Bay.
He pleaded guilty in the Downing Centre Local Court on 30 October 2024 to conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of cocaine, contrary to section 307.1 of the Criminal Code (Cth).
On Friday (13 February 2026), he was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment and will serve a non-parole period of five years.
One alleged member of the syndicate remains before the courts.
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