A 29-year-old Meadow Heights man has been arrested as part of an operation which police say also resulted in the arrest of a major player in Victoria’s illegal tobacco trade.
Authorities have charged two men and seized tonnes of illicit tobacco, cigarette-making equipment and vape products during sweeping raids across Melbourne’s northern suburbs, including Campbellfield, Meadow Heights, Mickleham, Gladstone Park and Craigieburn, and North Coburg.
Police executed a series of warrants on Tuesday, September 9, uncovering what police allege was one of the largest illicit tobacco operations in Victoria.
Officers seized tobacco manufacturing equipment, filters, a cash-counting machine, electronic devices and about 70 pallets of illicit product.
Authorities said the haul included tonnes of loose-leaf tobacco, tens of millions of individual cigarette sticks and tens of thousands of vape products, with the final tally being assessed.
The 29-year-old Meadow Heights man was charged with conspiracy to import and possess unlawfully imported tobacco and is alleged to have co-ordinated the movement of the illicit products across the state.
A 49-year-old North Coburg man, alleged to be the ringleader of the criminal syndicate, was also arrested at his home and charged with a string of federal and state offences, including tobacco importation, unlawful supply, and possession of nicotine vapes.
Police allege the North-Coburg man masterminded the importation of more than seven tonnes of loose-leaf tobacco, five million cigarettes and more than 5000 vapes into Victoria over a 10-month period, dodging more than $36.6 million in Commonwealth excise taxes.
Investigators claim the man used freight and logistics connections to move the contraband through air and sea cargo disguised as kitchen goods and clothing, before distributing it through a network of tobacco shops.
Both men went before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, September 11 and further arrests are expected to be made as the investigation continues.
Australian Federal Police (AFP) Acting Commander Investigations Ray Imbriano said the case showed how law enforcement agencies were targeting the organised crime groups driving the illicit tobacco trade.
“Illicit tobacco has fuelled unspeakable violence and crime in our communities,” he said.
“Criminal networks mistakenly believe they can operate outside of the law in Australia. We’re here to remind them – they cannot.”
Australian Border Force (ABF) Commander Greg Dowse said officers remained focused on dismantling syndicates profiting from black market trade.
The arrests come after the Victorian joint Organised Crime Taskforce (JOCTF), comprised of members of the AFP, Victoria Police and ABF launched an investigation in November 2024, based on intelligence from the ABF-led illicit tobacco taskforce about a suspected criminal syndicate smuggling significant amounts of illicit tobacco into Australia.
