- Police found a larger meth lab similar to the TV show ‘Breaking Bad’
- He was capable of manufacturing up to a ton of methamphetamine
Police have uncovered potentially the largest drug lab in queensland after raiding three storage units in brisbaneis to the north.
Queensland Police and the Australian Federal Police executed three search warrants at a National Storage complex in Rothwell at around 9am on Tuesday.
What officers found inside three storage units is likely the largest clandestine drug facility ever found in the state.
More than 27 kg of pure methamphetamine were discovered in the warehouse, along with $1 million worth of equipment and 900 kg of benzyl methyl ketone (BMK), the drug’s precursor.
That amount of BMK could create about a ton of methamphetamine worth about $500 million.
AFP Detective Superintendent Adrian Telfer said the amount of precursor material and the cost of industrial-scale laboratory equipment could only be collected by a well-established organized crime syndicate.
“The scale of this operation shows that the AFP and our partners have uncovered a highly sophisticated and well-funded organized crime operation,” said Detective Superintendent Telfer.
“AFP is working with QPS and other law enforcement partners to identify criminals linked to this operation to prevent them from profiting at the expense of our communities.”
The Courier Mail reported that the lab used two methods to make the drug, including the P2P method used for large-scale production in the United States and Mexico and is the same method used on the Breaking Bad television show.
The method is known to create a more potent product.
A 38-year-old Albion man and a 44-year-old Bracken Ridge man were arrested and are expected to be charged at a later date.
Police believe the lab is connected to a similar facility in Brisbane’s Pinkenba raided in June where $5.5 million worth of methamphetamine and $500,000 in cash were seized.
Similarly, the seized methamphetamine was near ‘chemical’ grade, a level of purity never seen cooked in Queensland.
“What worries me is that we are turning the page into a darker chapter than we have seen before.
“We’ve always had the scourge of methamphetamine, but this highly pure crystal form of the drug has mostly been imported,” Brisbane Regional Crime Coordinator detective superintendent Andrew Massingham told the Courier Mail at the time.
A 38-year-old Albion man was charged with 12 offenses related to the raids, including trafficking in dangerous drugs.