Drug syndicate accused front Melbourne court
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4.4 tonnes: A Customs officer unpacks the cans full of drugs. (Australian Customs)
Twelve men and a woman have appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates Court accused of being involved in a major international drug syndicate.
They are among 20 people arrested in Victoria, NSW, South Australia and Tasmania today after lengthy investigations by authorities.
The arrests follow what Customs has described as the world's single biggest seizure of ecstasy.
Four-point-four tonnes of the drug was uncovered in Melbourne last year as well as a further 150 kilograms of cocaine seized in the last fortnight.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) executed 45 search warrants this morning as part of their investigation into the international drug syndicate.
Some of those who have been arrested are alleged to be involved with major drug trafficking in Australia.
The AFP says the investigation also identified a money-laundering operation worth more than $49 million.
One of the men arrested is a 50-year-old Tasmanian man who appeared in court this morning.
Graham Potter from Coles Bay on the east coast is charged with trafficking in a controlled substance in a commercial quantity.
Federal prosecutors are asking for an extradition order to move him interstate.
The Melbourne Magistrates Court heard prosecutors would need up to six months to prepare a brief of evidence against the men because of the volume of surveillance material in the case.
The court heard the material includes almost 200,000 hours of secretly recorded phone calls and 3,600 bugged conversations.
The men and woman did not apply for bail and have yet to plead to a number of drug related charges.
They will return to court next February.
