HMAS Melbourne Intercepts 427kg Heroin
HMAS Melbourne’s crew has seized 427 kilograms of heroin hidden in a fishing dhow carrying the illegal drugs across the Indian Ocean. The intercept occurred during Melbourne’s first patrol of her current Operation MANITOU deployment to the Middle East Region assigned to the multinational Combined Maritime Forces (CMF). Illegal narcotics are a common source of funding for terrorist organisations and HMAS Melbourne’s Commanding Officer, Commander Bill Waters, said the drugs had an estimated Australian street value of at least AUD$126 million. “In 2015, Australian ships have seized nearly two tonnes of heroin while deployed to Middle Eastern waters,” he said. “This latest intercept shows our continuing vigilance is essential in the fight against terrorism.
Cruise Ship Worker Arrested for Smuggling
A crew member aboard a Miami-based cruise ship was arrested on smuggling charges after Royal Caribbean security officers found a laundry bag full of cocaine and 3,000 ecstasy tablets aboard the vessel, the U.S. Customs Service said on Tuesday. Shipboard security officers said the crewman, Peter Westman Campbell of Jamaica, acted suspiciously after Vision of the Seas left the Caribbean island of Curacao on Friday, a Customs spokesman said. They reportedly found a laundry bag with 38.7 lbs. of cocaine in Campbell's possession, detained him aboard the ship and turned him over to Customs officers. A subsequent search by ship officers turned up another 18.7 lbs. of cocaine and 3,000 ecstasy tablets hidden near the ship's beauty salon, the officer said.
