Latest news with #AustralianBorderForce
ABC News
a day ago
- General
- ABC News
Suspected boat arrivals discovered in Arnhem Land
Samantha Donovan: Up to eight people have been detained by Border Protection Authorities after reaching a remote part of the Northern Territory coast by boat. They were found walking near the town of Maningrida, east of Darwin. The ABC understands they're Chinese nationals. Their arrival has set off another stoush between the government and opposition over border security. Andrew Green is the ABC's Defence Correspondent. Andrew, what can you tell us about these people who've arrived in Australia? Andrew Greene: These details have started emerging in perhaps the past 24 hours or so, but what we have established is that earlier this week on Tuesday, authorities in a remote part of the Northern Territory in Arnhem Land, around 500 kilometres east of Darwin, were alerted to the presence of a group of men believed to be from China who had made their way onto the Australian mainland in a very remote part of the northern coast of Australia. But they were detected and then apprehended by authorities. And then a day later, another two men, also believed to have come to Australia from China originally, were spotted by some local rangers and they too, we understand, are now in the custody of the Australian Border Force, but their precise location is not known. Samantha Donovan: Have the authorities had much to say about their arrival, Andrew? Andrew Greene: Following their usual course of action, they've said very little. In fact, in a statement, the Australian Border Force tells the ABC that it does not either confirm or deny operations or comment on them. But what we have established is that authorities are yet to locate a boat that may have taken these people to Australia. Now that points to a few things. It suggests that perhaps they were dropped off close to the mainland by perhaps even an Indonesian fishing vessel or by another party that's brought them to Australia. Apart from that though, very little known. We know that it's up to eight individuals who are, we believe most of them are from China, but that is of course not confirmed by the authorities. Samantha Donovan: And what's been the reaction from politicians? Andrew Greene: Well, the newly appointed Shadow Home Affairs Minister, Andrew Hastie, has said that this is another example of the underinvestment by the Albanese government in border protection. The fact that a boat carrying unauthorised arrivals had made it to the Australian mainland. And in response to that, the Home Affairs Minister, Tony Burke, took aim at his new opposition counterpart. And he said that two days into the job, Andrew Hastie had already helped the cause of people smugglers by making those comments. So while not officially commenting on whether the arrivals had happened at all, Tony Burke did take a swing at his opponent. Samantha Donovan: Andrew Greene is the ABC's Defence Correspondent.
West Australian
2 days ago
- West Australian
Man jailed after exotic snakes, turtles, iguanas found in foul-smelling package marked as ‘toys' during border search
A man's attempt to import a series of exotic animals into Australia – some of which died during the ill-fated voyage – has been exposed after the plot was foiled by border force officials. Queensland man Jesse Sayeg was this week handed a nine-month jail term after pleading guilty in Caloundra Magistrates Court to three offences related to the illegal importation of live exotic animals. The case was cracked open in March 2023 when Australian Border Force (ABF) officers became suspicious of a package sent from the Philippines. A strong odour from the package prompted them to alert the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). An X-ray of the parcel, which has been misdeclared as 'toys' and sent under a false name, revealed a consignment of reptiles and spiders. A DAFF veterinarian opened the package to discover three snakes, six iguanas, three soft shell turtles and three tarantulas stuffed into calico drawstring bags. Many of the animals were dead. The discovery launched a two-year, multi-agency investigation dubbed Operation Cascade, which uncovered a broader criminal network spanning three Australian states including Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia. Subsequent search warrants led authorities to seize a further trove of exotic species, including two hog nose snakes, 45 tarantulas, three eco-skeleton spiders, two scorpions, an African hedgehog and an alligator snapping turtle. DAFF Deputy Secretary of Biosecurity, Operations and Compliance, Justine Saunders, warned of the serious risks posed by such illegal activity. DAFF Deputy Secretary of Biosecurity, Operations and Compliance, Justine Saunders, said the illegal introduction of exotic animals into Australia poses a significant threat. 'Exotic animals can carry biosecurity risks and diseases unknown in Australia, potentially devastating agriculture, native wildlife and even human health,' Ms Saunders said. She said breaches of Australia's biosecurity laws are treated with the utmost seriousness, carrying penalties of up to 10 years' imprisonment and fines as high as $1.65 million for individuals, or $8.25 million for companies. 'DAFF has more than a thousand biosecurity officers working at our borders and in mailrooms every day who are trained to pick up anomalies in the system,' she said. Ms Saunders said wildlife trafficking was a major global crime, ranking just behind arms, drugs and human trafficking in scale. 'DAFF, along with other government agencies, are united in their commitment to eradicate the illicit wildlife trade and will take vigorous and relentless action to seek out those responsible, bring them to justice and stop this global crime.'
Perth Now
2 days ago
- Perth Now
Disturbing find in ‘toy' package
A man's attempt to import a series of exotic animals into Australia – some of which died during the ill-fated voyage – has been exposed after the plot was foiled by border force officials. Queensland man Jesse Sayeg was this week handed a nine-month jail term after pleading guilty in Caloundra Magistrates Court to three offences related to the illegal importation of live exotic animals. The case was cracked open in March 2023 when Australian Border Force (ABF) officers became suspicious of a package sent from the Philippines. A strong odour from the package prompted them to alert the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). A Queensland man has been handed a nine-month prison sentence after admitting his involvement in a global wildlife trafficking ring that smuggled exotic animals into Australia. DAFF Credit: Supplied An X-ray of the parcel, which has been misdeclared as 'toys' and sent under a false name, revealed a consignment of reptiles and spiders. A DAFF veterinarian opened the package to discover three snakes, six iguanas, three soft shell turtles and three tarantulas stuffed into calico drawstring bags. Many of the animals were dead. The discovery launched a two-year, multi-agency investigation dubbed Operation Cascade, which uncovered a broader criminal network spanning three Australian states including Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia. Jesse Sayeg appeared in Caloundra Magistrates Court this week, where he admitted to three offences related to the illegal importation of live tortoises and turtles. DAFF Credit: Supplied Subsequent search warrants led authorities to seize a further trove of exotic species, including two hog nose snakes, 45 tarantulas, three eco-skeleton spiders, two scorpions, an African hedgehog and an alligator snapping turtle. DAFF Deputy Secretary of Biosecurity, Operations and Compliance, Justine Saunders, warned of the serious risks posed by such illegal activity. A DAFF veterinarian opened the package to discover three snakes, six iguanas, three soft shell turtles, and three tarantulas stuffed into calico drawstring bags. Many of the animals were dead. DAFF Credit: Supplied DAFF Deputy Secretary of Biosecurity, Operations and Compliance, Justine Saunders, said the illegal introduction of exotic animals into Australia poses a significant threat. 'Exotic animals can carry biosecurity risks and diseases unknown in Australia, potentially devastating agriculture, native wildlife and even human health,' Ms Saunders said. Breaches of Australia's biosecurity laws are treated with the utmost seriousness, carrying penalties of up to 10 years' imprisonment and fines as high as $1.65 million for individuals, or $8.25 million for companies. DAFF Credit: Supplied She said breaches of Australia's biosecurity laws are treated with the utmost seriousness, carrying penalties of up to 10 years' imprisonment and fines as high as $1.65 million for individuals, or $8.25 million for companies. 'DAFF has more than a thousand biosecurity officers working at our borders and in mailrooms every day who are trained to pick up anomalies in the system,' she said. Ms Saunders said wildlife trafficking was a major global crime, ranking just behind arms, drugs and human trafficking in scale. 'DAFF, along with other government agencies, are united in their commitment to eradicate the illicit wildlife trade and will take vigorous and relentless action to seek out those responsible, bring them to justice and stop this global crime.'
News.com.au
2 days ago
- General
- News.com.au
Man jailed after exotic snakes, turtles, iguanas found in foul-smelling package marked as ‘toys' during border search
A man's attempt to import a series of exotic animals into Australia – some of which died during the ill-fated voyage – has been exposed after the plot was foiled by border force officials. Queensland man Jesse Sayeg was this week handed a nine-month jail term after pleading guilty in Caloundra Magistrates Court to three offences related to the illegal importation of live exotic animals. The case was cracked open in March 2023 when Australian Border Force (ABF) officers became suspicious of a package sent from the Philippines. A strong odour from the package prompted them to alert the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). An X-ray of the parcel, which has been misdeclared as 'toys' and sent under a false name, revealed a consignment of reptiles and spiders. A DAFF veterinarian opened the package to discover three snakes, six iguanas, three soft shell turtles and three tarantulas stuffed into calico drawstring bags. Many of the animals were dead. The discovery launched a two-year, multi-agency investigation dubbed Operation Cascade, which uncovered a broader criminal network spanning three Australian states including Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia. Subsequent search warrants led authorities to seize a further trove of exotic species, including two hog nose snakes, 45 tarantulas, three eco-skeleton spiders, two scorpions, an African hedgehog and an alligator snapping turtle. DAFF Deputy Secretary of Biosecurity, Operations and Compliance, Justine Saunders, warned of the serious risks posed by such illegal activity. DAFF Deputy Secretary of Biosecurity, Operations and Compliance, Justine Saunders, said the illegal introduction of exotic animals into Australia poses a significant threat. 'Exotic animals can carry biosecurity risks and diseases unknown in Australia, potentially devastating agriculture, native wildlife and even human health,' Ms Saunders said. She said breaches of Australia's biosecurity laws are treated with the utmost seriousness, carrying penalties of up to 10 years' imprisonment and fines as high as $1.65 million for individuals, or $8.25 million for companies. 'DAFF has more than a thousand biosecurity officers working at our borders and in mailrooms every day who are trained to pick up anomalies in the system,' she said. Ms Saunders said wildlife trafficking was a major global crime, ranking just behind arms, drugs and human trafficking in scale. 'DAFF, along with other government agencies, are united in their commitment to eradicate the illicit wildlife trade and will take vigorous and relentless action to seek out those responsible, bring them to justice and stop this global crime.'
West Australian
2 days ago
- West Australian
Man jailed after exotic animal trafficking gang exposed
Noticing a strange smell, officials opened a package from overseas to discover snakes, iguanas, turtles and tarantulas - many of them dead. Two years later, a sweeping investigation into an illegal wildlife trafficking ring has led to a Queensland man being sentenced to jail. Jesse Sayeg pleaded guilty to three offences related to smuggling exotic animals into Australia in Caloundra Magistrates Court this week. It came after a multi-year probe spanning three states that exposed an illegal exotic wildlife trafficking gang, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) said. Officials were first tipped off when Australian Border Force officers noticed the smell coming from a package sent from the Philippines in March 2023. They tipped off the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry which X-rayed the parcel, revealing its exotic contents. Overall 15 reptiles and spiders were discovered in drawstring calico fabric bags - six iguanas along with three snakes, soft-shell turtles and tarantulas. The mostly dead wildlife were in a consignment under a false name and misdeclared as toys, the federal department said. The investigation into the trafficking gang that unfolded stretched across Queensland, Western Australia and Victoria, with search warrants uncovering many more animals. An additional two hog nose snakes, 45 tarantulas, two scorpions, an African hedgehog and an alligator snapping turtle were among those discovered as part of the probe. Sayeg was involved in the trafficking ring, admitting to illegally importing live tortoises and turtles in Caloundra Magistrates Court. He was sentenced to nine months in prison. "The illegal wildlife trade is the world's fourth-largest illicit transnational trade, after arms, drugs and human trafficking," the department's deputy secretary of biosecurity, operations and compliance Justine Saunders said. "DAFF, along with other government agencies, are united in their commitment to eradicate the illicit wildlife trade and will take vigorous and relentless action to seek out those responsible, bring them to justice and stop this global crime." Ms Saunders said animals introduced to Australia via illegal trafficking created "unacceptable biosecurity risks", and could be potentially devastating to agriculture, wildlife and even human health. "Any breach of Australia's biosecurity laws is taken extremely seriously." Individuals face a maximum of 10 years in prison and fines of up to $1.65 million or $8.25 million for a company, she said. The two-year probe dubbed Operation Cascade was led by DAFF with help from the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water as well as Border Force and Victorian, Queensland and Western Australian agencies.
