A Brazilian man will spend eight years behind bars over a cocaine smuggling plot after evading police for over a decade.
The now 42-year-old was first arrested and charged on the Gold Coast in 2012 as part of an operation into a transnational drug trafficking syndicate.
Police allege the man, along with six others, organised for a shipment of cocaine to be sent from South America to be stored in New Zealand.
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Smugglers then tried to import the drugs into Australia by putting them in their luggage.
A total of 7.5kg of cocaine and $615,000 in cash was seized during search warrants on the Gold Coast and New Zealand.
The seized cocaine had an estimated street value of $1.75m in 2012, which would rake in about $2.3m today.
Three men were charged in Australia and another four were charged in New Zealand.
After the Brazilian national’s arrest, he was granted bail and was told to return back to court in May 2012.
When he did not show up an arrest warrant was issued.
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He was not seen again by police until a decade later, in Western Australia.
WA Police stopped the man over a traffic matter, and officers realised something was wrong when they became suspicious about his identification details.
Checks coordinated with the Australian Border Force following the traffic stop revealed he was unlawfully in the country and had a warrant out for his arrest.
The man was tracked down by police, and was arrested and extradited to Queensland to face trial over his role in the import of 1.38kg of cocaine.
He was found guilty on October 15, and was sentenced to eight years, including a non-parole period of four years and three months.
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