A Logan man is one of four people charged with drug trafficking after an operation police called Quebec Walkover.
Police will allege the man, 53, of Beenleigh, was part of a syndicate involved in the alleged production and distribution of $6.5 million of cannabis in Queensland.
Detectives have charged two men and two women after the six-month operation that ranged across three states and involved investigators from Queensland’s drug and serious crime group State Crime Command.
Police will allege the four were involved in the organised production and trafficking of more than 1.1 tonnes of cannabis between Melbourne and Brisbane from 2016 to 2018.
A Melbourne woman, 58, was arrested at Brisbane airport last night, Sunday, December 16.
She was charged with one count each of trafficking a commercial quantity of a controlled drug and cultivating a marketable quantity of controlled plants, two counts of possessing controlled drugs and three counts of possessing plant material for the cultivation of controlled plants or equipment.
A foreign national, 49, and the Beenleigh man were charged with trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, possessing plant material for the cultivation of controlled plants or equipment and possessing property suspected of having been used in connection with the commission of a drug offence.
Both were arrested on December 13 at a Sunnybank “grow house” where police will allege a sophisticated cannabis production set-up was in place, with 184 plants in various stages of growth. The three were due to appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court today.
A foreign national, 38, was arrested at Brisbane Airport on August 16. He has been charged with trafficking a commercial quantity of controlled drugs, possession of a dangerous drug and possessing property suspected of having been used in connection with the commission of a drug offence. He was due to re-appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court today.
Detectives from Western Australia’s Major and Organised Crime Group arrested a woman, a foreign national, in Perth on October 5. It is understood their investigations continue.
Police will allege three Brisbane homes had been modified to become sophisticated facilities for the hydroponic growth and cultivation of cannabis.
Cannabis with an estimated weight of nearly 150 kilograms, mobile phones, electronic tablets, cash and equipment like chemicals, scales and packaging items were seized. The houses were located at Narangba, Calamvale and Sunnybank.
Detective Inspector Bruno Asnicar, Drug and Serious Crime Group, said the closure of the operation was a significant result for police.
“The successful closure of an operation like Quebec Walkover is important because it deprives organised criminal syndicates of profit, making the community safer,” he said.
“We will be alleging this was a sophisticated criminal enterprise was involvede in the commercial production and distribution of cannabis.
“An offence which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.”