Australian police find meth in U.S. shipment of Sriracha

Oct. 31 (UPI) — Australian police have arrested four men on charges of importing nearly 900 pounds of methamphetamine in Sriracha bottles into the country, authorities said.

The bottles of hot sauce were imported into Australia from the United States as air cargo freight and were targeted for inspection by the Australian Border Force on Oct. 15, New South Wales Police Department said in a statement on Thursday.

The cargo — 768 bottles of declared hot chili sauce — was examined by the ABF and tested positive for methamphetamine, police said, adding that the amount seized has a street value of about $208 million.

Police arrested three men earlier this month and charged them with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of unlawful import. More than 30 boxes of the hot sauce were also confiscated, the department said.

A fourth man was arrested Thursday outside his home and is expected to face charges in connection to the importation of narcotics.

“This has been a complex investigation and we know the [methamphetamine] in this import was headed for a clandestine lab in the Sydney Metropolitan area for the extraction process to occur,” Acting Assistant Commissioner Stuart Smith said in a statement. “We will not stop with the arrests of these four men who are key members of the network.”

He said they will conduct further investigations to identify other people linked to the organized crime group.

The arrests are part of Strike Force Diffey, which was created in September 2018 by the State Crime Command’s Organised Crime Squad and the NSW Crime Commission to investigate money laundering and drug importations to Sydney.

“This outcome, which has come about through the expertise and hard work of multiple domestic agencies has spared countless Australians the pain that would have been caused by these dangerous drugs,” said Kirsty Schofield, Australian Border Force commander of organized crime. “It also serves as warning to people involved in the supply and distribution of illicit drugs — law enforcement will find you.”