Man charged as police crack down on alleged criminal syndicate

Victoria Police are intensifying their crackdown on an alleged criminal syndicate, targeting not only its core members but also those who facilitate its operations. A 40-year-old Keysborough man was arrested early Tuesday morning as part of an ongoing investigation into drug trafficking and money laundering.

The arrested man faces charges including cultivating commercial quantities of cannabis and committing an indictable offense while on bail. He appeared in Melbourne Magistrate's Court and has been remanded to reappear in October. Police investigations, initiated in 2023 by the Criminal Proceeds Squad, identified a rise in cannabis crop houses in the Latrobe Valley.

“

If you let someone use your house to grow cannabis, you will be targeted. If you undertake any kind of tradesperson activities to keep these properties running, you will be targeted.

Detective Superintendent Geri Porter emphasized that individuals providing services to the syndicate, such as electricians, real estate agents, cleaners, accountants, and landlords, will also be targeted. "If you let someone use your house to grow cannabis, you will be targeted," Porter warned. "If you undertake any kind of tradesperson activities to keep these properties running, you will be targeted."

“

We are determined to create the most hostile environment possible for these organised crime syndicates and do every single thing we can to ensure they don't benefit from this offending.

Since 2023, police have restrained 14 properties connected to the syndicate, valued at approximately $17.5 million. These include multiple properties in Morwell, Moe, and Keysborough, as well as others in Bendigo, Rosebud, McKinnon, Hallam, and Newborough. Detective Superintendent Porter stated the police are determined to make the environment hostile for organized crime and hold everyone accountable, stressing that willful blindness is no excuse.

Detective Senior Sergeant Shane Pola urged the public to report suspicious behavior, highlighting that drug trafficking and money laundering are not victimless crimes. He noted that these syndicates are often linked to violent offenses, including firearms, assaults, extortions, burglaries, and vehicle theft, causing significant harm to the community.

“

Someone is profiting off misery here. These criminal syndicates aren't just involved in drugs or money laundering; often they have links to violent and disruptive crimes involving firearms, assaults and extortions.