Five people charged over 850kg cocaine haul off Rottnest Island go on trial in WA Supreme Court
Five individuals are on trial in the Western Australia Supreme Court for their alleged roles in a plot to import 850kg of cocaine. The prosecution detailed a failed attempt to retrieve the drugs from a cargo ship off Rottnest Island.
Why it matters
Illustrates the scale of international drug trafficking operations and the legal response by Australian authorities.
Drugs being removed from the St Pinot vessel. ( Supplied: WA Police/AFP/ABF )
Five people allegedly involved in an attempt to import cocaine into Western Australia have gone on trial in the WA Supreme Court.
They were charged after the seizure of nearly 850kg of cocaine from a vessel named MV St Pinot.
The trial, which involves the use of two interpreters, is expected to run for more than 10 weeks.
Link copied Share Share article Three men who allegedly set out on a boat to retrieve packages of cocaine off Rottnest Island on a "dark and stormy night" had to be rescued by water police, the WA Supreme Court has heard.
The men were on board a vessel named "No Fixed Address", which had been bought for $65,000 cash.
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