168 kg of heroin seized in Australia

LONDON - Australian authorities have seized 168 kg of heroin, the fifth biggest shipment of the contraband ever to be smuggled into the country, hidden inside a consignment of wooden doors from Malaysia to Sydney, a media report said Monday.

The street value of the drug is more than 400 million Australian dollars (about $395 million), the Sky News reported.

A 55-year-old woman from Sydney, her 28-year-old son and a 33-year-old man from Hong Kong have been arrested and charged with importing an illegal drug.

Customs officers found the heroin after x-raying the cargo of what appeared to be 295 domestic internal doors.

But inside, nine of the doors contained 24 packages of white powder, and another had 14 packs.

Australia Federal Police commander David Stewart said: “They were of pretty poor construction - plywood was screwed on top of the doors and inside there were foil blocks.

“Once you unscrewed the ply from the doors it was very plain to see the blocks in full view. Customs detected them with relative ease.”

If convicted, the accused face life in prison.