Two men charged after allegedly smuggling over 600 pounds of meth in surfboards

September 6, 2023

Two men have faced court over an alleged plot to smuggle about 660 pounds of methamphetamine into Australia.

Police say the pair, both aged 33 and living in Melbourne’s southeast, are part of a Chinese and Taiwanese international crime syndicate operating out of Melbourne.

The alleged plot was uncovered after “anomalies” were found when a shipment of 12 surfboards was X-rayed on August 11.

Inside the surfboards, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) say they found about 172 pounds of a “crystalline substance” — alleged to be meth — before it was replaced with a dummy substance.

Two men allegedly involved in a Chinese and Taiwanese crime syndicate were arrested in Australia for smuggling nearly 660 pounds of meth into the country.

The meth was found inside a shipment of surfboards.

The shipment was then delivered to a storage unit in Dandenong South 12 days later.

One of the accused men, from Burwood, and another man from Punchbowl in Sydney, allegedly collected the surfboards before they were driven to Sydney on August 25.

Five days later, the Burwood man and his co-accused, from Ferntree Gully, attended a second storage unit.

One of the suspects getting arrested for the alleged drug smuggling scheme.

Police say they raided the unit later the same day, seizing boxes of silicone molds they believe were allegedly hidden with 440 to 660 pounds of methamphetamine.

The two men were arrested on Tuesday and each charged with drug possession, importing a commercial quantity of methamphetamine, and attempting to import a commercial quantity of methamphetamine.

On Thursday, Chen Chen and He-Cheng Huang appeared before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court where they were remanded into custody.

Police also found meth inside silicon molds in the storage unit. — Police also found meth inside silicon molds in a storage unit.

ABF acting Superintendent Felicity Wicks said the Australian Federal Police were committed to uncovering the “crafty” ways criminal groups attempt to circumvent borders.

“The ABF is committed to protecting the community from harmful drugs and working closely with our law enforcement partners to stop the tide of methamphetamine coming into Australia,” she said.

“Strong partnerships can stop organized crime syndicates by making the border a hostile operating environment for those who seek to do the community harm.”

Chen and Huang will return to court in January next year.