Qa'dah 06, 1431H. / October 14, 2010, SPA -- A tip-off from U.S. authorities led to the seizure of more than 1,000 pounds (460 kilograms) of cocaine transported to Australia from South America, police said Thursday, according to AP. The third-largest cocaine seizure in Australian history could have earned more than 160 million Australian dollars ($159 million) on the street, Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Andrew Colvin told reporters. Colvin said the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration tipped off police last week that a catamaran carrying cocaine was headed for Australia from South America. After two days of helicopter surveillance, a catamaran and another vessel were spotted Friday nearly 500 miles (800 kilometers) off the eastern coast. They were trailed until the yacht docked at Brisbane's Scarborough Marina. Colvin said the cocaine had apparently been offloaded from the catamaran to the yacht. The drugs were seized Tuesday and three Australian men were arrested. Two were charged with attempted importation of cocaine and the other with possession.
