Melbourne, Australia
(February 11, 2019) BTN —
Two men faced court over a major $1.3 billion
drug bust linked to a Mexican cartel as the Bandidos bikie club made an
extraordinary statement condemning meth trafficking.
Federal police revealed on Friday that they had intercepted
1.7 tonnes of methamphetamine bound for Australia – the largest meth seizure
ever recorded on US soil and the biggest intercepted drug haul bound for
Australia. Police said the record haul demonstrated a clear link
between local outlaw bikie clubs and extremely sophisticated Mexican drug
cartels.
Bandidos MC Clubhouse in Melbourne
But the Bandidos motorcycle club released an unusual
statement on Monday, hotly denying having any link to the major haul. The drugs were "artfully concealed" inside a
shipment of loudspeakers on a ship in Los Angeles, US authorities said.
Van Dung Le, 31, and Chi Cuong Vu, 25, faced Melbourne
Magistrates Court after being extradited from Sydney last week.
Mr Vu, who appeared in court wearing a grey T-shirt with the
word "obey" on the front, is charged with attempting to import a
commercial quantity of methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin between October 28
last year and January 23. Mr Le, from the Sydney suburb of Hinchinbrook, is accused of
importing methamphetamine to the Victorian town of Donnybrook as recently as
last week.
Australian Federal Police display some of the drugs that were seized
He is charged with importing drugs since October last year.
Mr Vu, from Sydney's Bonnyrigg Heights, and Mr Le were
remanded in custody.
The court heard Mr Le was withdrawing from cocaine.
Their appearances came after American nationals Nasser Abo
Abdo, 52, and Leonor Fajardo, 46, who were both living in the Victorian town of
Woodstock, faced court last Friday alongside 31-year-old Tuan Ngoc Tran, of
Keilor Downs.
The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald revealed Mr Abo Abdo,
52, had been a prominent figure in the audio equipment industry in California
and ran a series of companies selling stereos, speakers, subwoofers and digital
amplifiers.
The Alphasonik-branded audio equipment case used to smuggle the methamphetamines
Photos distributed by police showed the intercepted drugs
were hidden inside boxes carrying the names Audiobahn and Alphasonik, two of
the speaker companies operated by Mr Abo Abdo.
US court records show that Mr Abo Abdo filed for bankruptcy
in California in 2008, claiming liabilities of US$4.6 million. His debts were
discharged in 2010.
All five men have been remanded in custody and are due to
return to court on June 17.
The Bandidos motorcycle club has rebuffed any suggestion it
is linked to the drug haul, saying the distribution and possession of ice goes
against the club's spirit and culture.
Bandidos MC Statement
"We, like most Australians, shared a sigh of relief
that these drugs never reached our shores," the Bandidos said in a
statement on Monday.
"The Bandido Motorcycle Club vehemently distance
ourselves from this insidious scourge on humanity, in every way, shape and
form.
"We categorically refute any suggestion of involvement
whatsoever, in this or any other matter concerning ice."
-Bandidos Motorcycle Club
AFP assistant commissioner Bruce Hill said on Friday a
Mexican cartel, which he declined to name, was allegedly behind the drugs.
"The cartel is among one of the most powerful and
violent drug trafficking syndicates in the world," he said.
