Organised Crime Squad detectives have charged two men following the seizure of cash and an amount of methylamphetamine concealed within baby wipes in Parramatta.
About 7am on Thursday, April 20, detectives from the State Crime Command’s Organised Crime Squad – with assistance from the Raptor Squad – executed a search warrant at a unit on Morton Street, Parramatta, as part of an ongoing investigation.
During the search warrant, police observed items consistent with a clandestine laboratory inside the apartment.
Officers from the Drug and Firearms Squad’s Chemicals Operations Unit attended and processed the scene.
A further search of the home located approximately 60 packets of disposable baby wipes, which allegedly were soaked in methylamphetamine oil, close to 700g of methylamphetamine, more than $60,000 cash, mobile phones, and documentation.
A second search warrant was executed at a unit on Alderson Avenue, Liverpool, where police seized further amounts of methylamphetamine, and cash.
All items were sent for further forensic examination.
Two men – aged 33 and 36 – were arrested at the Liverpool unit and were taken to Liverpool Police Station.
Both were charged with ‘supply indictable quantity prohibited drug’ and ‘knowingly deal with the proceeds of crime’.
The older man was also charged with ‘supply commercial quantity prohibited drug’, while the younger man was also charged with ‘possess/use a prohibited weapon without permit’.
Both men were refused bail to appear at Liverpool Local Court today.
Organised Crime Squad Commander, Detective Superintendent Peter Faux, said these seizures demonstrate the lengths organised crime syndicates are going to in order to import illicit drugs and avoid law enforcement detection.
“We will allege the clandestine laboratory, while in an inactive state, was contained within a high-rise apartment building,” Faux said.
“Criminal syndicates are continuing to attempt new ways to conceal the imports, with the intention of extracting the substances and getting them on the streets.
“NSW Police and our law enforcement partners such as the AFP and the ABF remain on the front foot, identifying and targeting these new methods to disrupt their supply chain.”
Anyone with information about drug supply and manufacture that may assist investigators is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or http://www.nsw.crimestoppers.com.au
Ellie Busby is a news reporter for Western Sydney Publishing Group. A graduate of the University of Hertfordshire and Western Sydney University, she is a journalism Major. Ellie has worked with Universal Media, The Cova Project and for a range of other organisations. In 2024, Ellie was named Young Writer of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.