Did Australia’s Largest Seized Fentanyl Shipment Come From Communist China?

On Monday, The Washington Times reported that the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said they intercepted a shipment of fentanyl, enough for 5 million doses, the largest seizure of a deadly synthetic opioid in the country in history.

Australian authorities say they usually seize about 30 grams or less of the drug. The drug is 100 times more potent than morphine and has a highly addictive painkiller record number of overdose users in the United States.

Commander of the Australian Border Force James Watson said, “Typically, we would only see fentanyl being detected in quantities of 1 g or less, so to have a detection that is 11 kg pure, is just quite frankly extraordinary.”

Australian police said that the drugs were hidden inside an industrial wood lathe on its way into Melbourne from Canada. It arrived at the Port of Melbourne in December 2021, having been shipped from Canada in December. But border inspectors only launched an investigation in February after discovering a powdered substance inside a military ammunition box hidden in the lathe.

A lengthy process of extracting the drug testing has been launched against the powdered substance. The Federal Police, Border Force, and the Department of Home Affairs have begun a joint investigation to find the person responsible for the importation of fentanyl.

Australian police emphasized that it was unusual to find fentanyl in the country for medical use. A dose of 28 milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal to users, which is equivalent to the weight of two grains of salt. Australia first detected illegal imports of fentanyl in 2017. Until now, authorities have only ever detected quantities of less than 30 grams.

For years, U.S. officials have warned Americans that fentanyl is produced in Communist Communist and sometimes shipped through Mexico. Fentanyl is often laced into heroin, leading to frequent fatal consequences.