WEBVTT - How Australia's largest cocaine bust unfolded

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<v Speaker 1>Already and this is this is the Daily This is

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<v Speaker 1>the Daily OS. Oh, now it makes sense.

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<v Speaker 2>Good morning and welcome to the Daily OS. It's Wednesday,

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<v Speaker 2>the fourth of December. I'm Sam, I'm Billy. Earlier this week,

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<v Speaker 2>Australian authorities seized two point three four tons of cocaine

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<v Speaker 2>from a fishing boat off Queensland's coast, in what was

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<v Speaker 2>the largest cocaine seizure in Australian history. Police told us

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<v Speaker 2>that the hall has a street value of about seven

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<v Speaker 2>hundred and sixty million dollars. Following the operation, called Operation

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<v Speaker 2>Tyran Door, police charged thirteen people, including two under eighteens

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<v Speaker 2>and one in a leadership position of an outlaw BIKI club,

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<v Speaker 2>with conspiring to import drugs. I found guilty. They're going

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<v Speaker 2>to face a maximum sentence of life in prison. In

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<v Speaker 2>today's podcast, we're going to chat to AFP Commander Stephen

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<v Speaker 2>Jay who led that operation.

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<v Speaker 1>So before we get into your interview with Commander Stephen J,

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<v Speaker 1>do you want to first just give us a sense

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<v Speaker 1>of the state of cocaine use in Australia at the moment,

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<v Speaker 1>and not only how many Australians are consuming cocaine, but

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<v Speaker 1>also it just feels like there have been quite a

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<v Speaker 1>few major police operations in the last twelve months from

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<v Speaker 1>police when it comes to cocaine.

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<v Speaker 2>It definitely feels like we've used the phrase record hall

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<v Speaker 2>quite a few times. And whether that's talking about international

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<v Speaker 2>cocaine siezures or domestic cocaine sizes, there's definitely been a trend.

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<v Speaker 2>And I asked the commander about this trend.

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<v Speaker 1>It seems clear that there's a real worldwide crackdown on

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<v Speaker 1>cocaine use.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, and interestingly, when I was doing the research for

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<v Speaker 2>the interview, there's also an increase in supply of cocaine,

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<v Speaker 2>so there's more cocaine being made out of cocaine hotspots

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<v Speaker 2>like South from Central America, so it's a higher volume game.

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<v Speaker 2>Now the sieges are going to be higher, the amounts

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<v Speaker 2>on the streets are going to be higher as well.

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<v Speaker 2>According to government data updated in February of this year,

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<v Speaker 2>four point five percent of Australians over fourteen, so we're

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<v Speaker 2>talking here about one million Australians have consumed cocaine in

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<v Speaker 2>the last twelve months.

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<v Speaker 1>Interesting that that's over fourteen, that's so young.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, well, that's kind of I think when they start

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<v Speaker 2>really diving into the research about population trends with drug use,

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<v Speaker 2>so that starts there, and that's up from about one

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<v Speaker 2>point three percent of the population in two thousand and one,

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<v Speaker 2>so it's kind of four x itself almost in twenty

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<v Speaker 2>five years. The average age of first use of cocaine

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<v Speaker 2>in Australia is now twenty four and that's risen a

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<v Speaker 2>little bit from twenty three and a half a couple

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<v Speaker 2>of years ago. And of those who have used cocaine

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<v Speaker 2>in the past year, about fifteen percent of that group

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<v Speaker 2>are using it monthly or more often than monthly. Interestingly,

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<v Speaker 2>one in four users of cocaine within the last twelve

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<v Speaker 2>months said they'd been diagnosed or treated for a mental

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<v Speaker 2>health condition as well.

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<v Speaker 1>Interesting what else do we know about the population of

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<v Speaker 1>Australians who use coke?

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<v Speaker 2>More common drug used by men rather than by women,

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<v Speaker 2>but the percentage of women who use it is growing

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<v Speaker 2>rapidly and that gap is narrowing. If you live in

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<v Speaker 2>a wealthy metropolitan area, you're four times more likely to

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<v Speaker 2>have had cocaine within the last twelve months than somebody

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<v Speaker 2>in areas of socioeconomic disadvantage. There's also a marked increase

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<v Speaker 2>over the last twenty years in cocaine consumption in the

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<v Speaker 2>LGBTQIA plus community, with consumption rates about two point seven

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<v Speaker 2>times higher in that sector compared to the heterosexual population.

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<v Speaker 2>If we zoom out and look at all drugs, it's

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<v Speaker 2>now the second most common drug consumed by Australians behind marijuana. Wow.

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<v Speaker 1>And so you said earlier that Australian authorities had seized

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<v Speaker 1>two point three four tons of cocaine. I find it

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<v Speaker 1>hard to conceptualize or contextualize how much that actually is.

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<v Speaker 1>I think a lot of young people know cocaine in

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<v Speaker 1>terms of bags, which is one gram. How many bags

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<v Speaker 1>are in two point three four tons of cocaine.

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<v Speaker 2>So it's two million, three hundred and twenty four thousand,

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<v Speaker 2>one gram bags of cocaine. That is an insane amount

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<v Speaker 2>of cocaine. It's the same weight as a car. And

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<v Speaker 2>I found that pretty helpful in trying to visualize how

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<v Speaker 2>much this is. And when you look at how much

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<v Speaker 2>cocaine Australians consume in a year, it's about four tons

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<v Speaker 2>according to federal authorities. So when you consider the two

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<v Speaker 2>point three to four ton seizure, that's over half of

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<v Speaker 2>the entire national annual consumption of cocaine in one seizure.

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<v Speaker 2>It's more than New South Wales alone, and New South

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<v Speaker 2>Wales alone is responsible for, you know, that kind of

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<v Speaker 2>fifty five percent of Australia's cocaine use. So that is

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<v Speaker 2>a massive dent into the supply of this drug coming

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<v Speaker 2>into Australia.

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<v Speaker 1>And what can you tell me about the price? How

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<v Speaker 1>does a seizure like this impact the price of cocaine

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<v Speaker 1>on the street.

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<v Speaker 2>It's a really tricky question to answer and to draw

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<v Speaker 2>a link between. And I've asked the commander to kind

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<v Speaker 2>of explain this point more as well, but to give

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<v Speaker 2>you a sense of the numbers here, in two thousand

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<v Speaker 2>and nine twenty ten, a gram of cocaine, a bag

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<v Speaker 2>of cocaine cost about forty to seventy dollars in Australia.

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<v Speaker 2>Now it sits somewhere between two hundred and fifty to

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<v Speaker 2>four hundred dollars, and we pay the highest for a

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<v Speaker 2>gram of cocaine out of any country in the world.

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<v Speaker 2>And I think the other interesting element here though, alongside price,

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<v Speaker 2>is what's actually in that bag of cocaine. And the

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<v Speaker 2>federal criminal authorities say that they've seen a decrease in

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<v Speaker 2>the purity of cocaine since about twenty eighteen. So on

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<v Speaker 2>the graph, there's an interesting increase in the purity of

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<v Speaker 2>cocaine in kind of two thousand and five to twenty eighteen.

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<v Speaker 2>Now it's dipping. And some data that's emerged from the

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<v Speaker 2>act's pill testing in recent years shows that as much

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<v Speaker 2>as forty percent of cocaine in Australia is not actually cocaine.

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<v Speaker 2>And that was also something I wanted to talk to

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<v Speaker 2>the commander about, which is this idea of if we're

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<v Speaker 2>removing cocaine from the streets, but we know that consumption

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<v Speaker 2>doesn't change, then what are people actually consuming?

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<v Speaker 1>Great point, let's get to that chat.

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<v Speaker 2>Commander Stephen Jay, thank you so much for joining us

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<v Speaker 2>on the Daily OS this morning.

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<v Speaker 3>My pleasure. Sam.

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<v Speaker 2>Can you give me a rundown of this week's seizure

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<v Speaker 2>and why it was so significant to the AFP.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, okay. Well, as mentioned the investigation, Operation Tirandor was

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<v Speaker 3>a joint investigation involving the STRAIN through the Police, the

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<v Speaker 3>Queensland Police Services Australian Border Force, which commenced last month

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<v Speaker 3>as a result of information suggesting that the syndic was

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<v Speaker 3>planning to import multi time importation of cocaine into Australia

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<v Speaker 3>through the coast of Queensland. So the investigation progressed very

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<v Speaker 3>very quickly, leading to what occurred on Sunday afternoon, which

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<v Speaker 3>was the seizure of two point three four tons of

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<v Speaker 3>cocaine on a small boat off the coast of Ghari

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<v Speaker 3>in Queensland and the rest of thirteen persons, including two juveniles.

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<v Speaker 3>So I understand the two point three or four tons

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<v Speaker 3>is the largest ever seizure of cocaine in our country

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<v Speaker 3>and obviously is quite significant that respect, we will allege

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<v Speaker 3>two of the individuals who were arrested senior members of

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<v Speaker 3>the Common Serio's outlaw motorcycle game. So this arrest and

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<v Speaker 3>the siege will have a significant impact, we believe in

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<v Speaker 3>not just the drug market Australia, but also I guess

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<v Speaker 3>the organized crimes framework in this country.

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<v Speaker 2>Were the Federal Police surprised with the quantity of drugs

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<v Speaker 2>on board that ship?

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<v Speaker 3>Look, we were very much working based on information available

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<v Speaker 3>to us that it was a multi time importation, so

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<v Speaker 3>I don't think we were necessary surprise when we found

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<v Speaker 3>that amount of drugs on the boat. What I would

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<v Speaker 3>say is obviously Australia is a very attractive market for

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<v Speaker 3>cartels and syndicates operating in South America to send drugs

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<v Speaker 3>such as cocaine into Australia. So there is a large,

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<v Speaker 3>unfortunately a large appetite for these drugs. So large sieges

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<v Speaker 3>like this are very unusual, but they're probably reflective of

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<v Speaker 3>the issues we have with drug consumption this country, and

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<v Speaker 3>particularly the appetites amongst some people to buy these drugs.

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<v Speaker 2>One thing I noticed as I was reading about this

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<v Speaker 2>operation is that it began in November. I mean by

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<v Speaker 2>you know, a look at a calendar that could be

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<v Speaker 2>potentially only a week ago or a couple of weeks ago.

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<v Speaker 2>Was that unusual for an operation that resulted in such

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<v Speaker 2>a sizeable seizure? And why did things kind of come

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<v Speaker 2>to you so quickly and then eventuate to its conclusion

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<v Speaker 2>so quickly.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, that's a good point, stam So yes, for us,

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<v Speaker 3>the investigation only commenced a month ago, so yes, it

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<v Speaker 3>is unusual and quick. What I would say, however, is

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<v Speaker 3>that the individuals the entity is involved in this kind

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<v Speaker 3>of offending, alleged defending, You don't just stumble into this

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<v Speaker 3>it's something that you have to make yourself available for.

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<v Speaker 3>So police forces and agencies around the country very well

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<v Speaker 3>versed in identifying people who may be involved in this

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<v Speaker 3>type of activity. So although the investigation only run for

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<v Speaker 3>a month, the reality is, you know, intelligence and information

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<v Speaker 3>and available to us suggestive that something was occurring. The

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<v Speaker 3>other point you make, which is a good one, is

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<v Speaker 3>that this is a significant undertaking. So we may have

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<v Speaker 3>only been physically investigating for a month, the reality is

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<v Speaker 3>and an activity like this, planning for a syndicate to

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<v Speaker 3>import this quantity of drugs in Australia may have taken

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<v Speaker 3>twelve to eighteen months, So we have come in late.

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<v Speaker 3>But a syndicate or a group of individuals looking to

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<v Speaker 3>do what these people have alledged really tried to do

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<v Speaker 3>this would have been a significant enterprice that may have

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<v Speaker 3>taken a very long time for them to pull together.

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<v Speaker 3>So I think it's fair to say we came at

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<v Speaker 3>the tail ends. But you know, the individuals who have

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<v Speaker 3>been arrested were known at us.

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<v Speaker 2>And that's something I've picked up in our comments section

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<v Speaker 2>when we've been reporting this story, is you know that

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<v Speaker 2>we're talking about the weight of a motor vehicle worth

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<v Speaker 2>of cocaine coming in. I mean that is a complex operation.

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<v Speaker 2>If you're moving a ton of bricks or a ton

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<v Speaker 2>of wood rather than a ton of illicit drugs.

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<v Speaker 3>That's a very good point and I think that also

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<v Speaker 3>goes to an issue which we've mentioned is not only

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<v Speaker 3>do drugs like this have a potentially catastrophic impact on

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<v Speaker 3>the Australian community, what this syndicate proposed to do is

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<v Speaker 3>highly risky. So it's risky to people who may be

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<v Speaker 3>on the may end up consuming these drugs. But the

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<v Speaker 3>individuals involved in this alleged offending have attempted to travel

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<v Speaker 3>four hundred and sixty comeras off the coast of Australia

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<v Speaker 3>to collect a large weight of drugs in what was

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<v Speaker 3>questionable weather conditions and have then proceeded back to the

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<v Speaker 3>proximity of Ghari where their vessels broken down.

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<v Speaker 2>So it's risky exactly. And that's been the angle actually

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<v Speaker 2>picked up by most of the international media is you know,

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<v Speaker 2>the headlines are reading ship breaks down as cocaine you

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<v Speaker 2>pick up, mission goes along. Did that break down in

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<v Speaker 2>the mechanical issues of the ship change the way that

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<v Speaker 2>your team approached the mission?

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<v Speaker 3>No, I mean it's fair to say they were. Obviously

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<v Speaker 3>the LEDs to Nikot were very surprised that their vessel

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<v Speaker 3>broke down, and we were as well. Neither We probably

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<v Speaker 3>were on common ground in that perspective. Neither of s

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<v Speaker 3>expected this will occurred. But fortunately for us, obviously we

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<v Speaker 3>were aware of what was going on and we were

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<v Speaker 3>able to We were able to in addict and water

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<v Speaker 3>police there and obviously arrested the elite defenders on the boat.

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<v Speaker 3>I think it's worth noting too that this syndicate had

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<v Speaker 3>previously attempted to pick up from the mother vessel on

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<v Speaker 3>another small boat and that had broken down. So actually

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<v Speaker 3>the syndicate had made two attempts to travel to the

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<v Speaker 3>mother vessel to collect the drugs. The first vessel didn't

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<v Speaker 3>get very fir and broke down. The second one got

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<v Speaker 3>out and got most of the way back and broke down.

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<v Speaker 3>So again it points to just how dangerous the type

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<v Speaker 3>of activity is and it's certainly not something we would

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<v Speaker 3>recommend for anyone to attempt to do.

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<v Speaker 2>And you said earlier in the week in the media

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<v Speaker 2>that that mother vessel is still in the ocean, right, Yeah, Look,

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<v Speaker 2>what I.

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<v Speaker 3>Would say is obviously the source of the cocaine, including

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<v Speaker 3>the mother vessel and location for which has come from.

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<v Speaker 3>It's still very much an active line of inquiry to us,

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<v Speaker 3>and obviously we're still progressing aspects of that. I can't

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<v Speaker 3>really speak much further on that at this stage.

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<v Speaker 2>I'd love to turn then to you know, you mentioned

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<v Speaker 2>before that this type of operation occurs and then you

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<v Speaker 2>hope that it takes drugs off the street, and especially

0:11:56.280 --> 0:11:58.800
<v Speaker 2>of that volume. I was doing a bit of research

0:11:58.800 --> 0:12:01.320
<v Speaker 2>before this, and you know that's the higher volume of

0:12:01.360 --> 0:12:03.760
<v Speaker 2>the consumption of everyone in New South Wales for a year,

0:12:04.120 --> 0:12:07.120
<v Speaker 2>so it's a sizeable amount of cocaine. How do you

0:12:07.200 --> 0:12:12.839
<v Speaker 2>guys then measure the effectiveness and the quantifiable results of

0:12:12.880 --> 0:12:16.080
<v Speaker 2>an operation like that in the say, twelve months to come.

0:12:16.480 --> 0:12:18.920
<v Speaker 3>I mean, that's a good question, and to be frank,

0:12:18.960 --> 0:12:21.760
<v Speaker 3>there's not necessarily a lot of science around it, and

0:12:21.880 --> 0:12:24.400
<v Speaker 3>what we do for a fact is that it will

0:12:24.400 --> 0:12:27.680
<v Speaker 3>have a significant impact. There's a lot of people who've invested,

0:12:27.920 --> 0:12:30.600
<v Speaker 3>or we would presume quite rightly have invested a lot

0:12:30.600 --> 0:12:33.160
<v Speaker 3>of money, who are now out of pocket. So not

0:12:33.200 --> 0:12:35.920
<v Speaker 3>only as a big hole in Australia's cocaine market, or

0:12:35.960 --> 0:12:39.400
<v Speaker 3>anticipated cocaine market which will need to be filled. There

0:12:39.400 --> 0:12:41.000
<v Speaker 3>will be a lot of people in the criminal networks

0:12:41.040 --> 0:12:42.800
<v Speaker 3>who have lost a lot of money, so that will

0:12:42.800 --> 0:12:46.680
<v Speaker 3>have percussions across the wider network. What we do say is,

0:12:46.720 --> 0:12:49.160
<v Speaker 3>obviously we recognize there is this significant market for a

0:12:49.200 --> 0:12:51.960
<v Speaker 3>list of drugs in this country. We would hope that,

0:12:52.120 --> 0:12:55.560
<v Speaker 3>you know, this would provide opportunity for those who are

0:12:55.679 --> 0:12:58.000
<v Speaker 3>you know, who are impacted by drugs to reconsider and

0:12:58.040 --> 0:13:01.239
<v Speaker 3>to seek help. And we're aware that three people hospitalize

0:13:01.240 --> 0:13:05.400
<v Speaker 3>every day just with cocaine related other doses or injuries.

0:13:05.679 --> 0:13:08.080
<v Speaker 3>There is a perception about cocaine, but cocaine is a

0:13:08.080 --> 0:13:11.320
<v Speaker 3>serious drug that causes significant health issues and hopefully this

0:13:11.360 --> 0:13:15.200
<v Speaker 3>will have an impact and lead people who maybe caipitual

0:13:15.320 --> 0:13:18.640
<v Speaker 3>users to seek medical help and find a way to

0:13:18.679 --> 0:13:19.160
<v Speaker 3>deal with that.

0:13:19.440 --> 0:13:21.320
<v Speaker 2>And the other thing it might do, of course, is

0:13:22.120 --> 0:13:25.320
<v Speaker 2>naturally if there's less supply in the market, but you know,

0:13:25.520 --> 0:13:29.800
<v Speaker 2>increased or sustained demand, the price of cocaine could increase

0:13:29.920 --> 0:13:32.480
<v Speaker 2>in Australia. Do you hope that there's kind of a

0:13:32.480 --> 0:13:35.280
<v Speaker 2>tipping point that there's a price that the Australians are

0:13:35.320 --> 0:13:38.440
<v Speaker 2>not willing to pay for cocaine at a really good point.

0:13:38.480 --> 0:13:41.760
<v Speaker 3>I think what we understand is Australian cocaine users pay

0:13:41.760 --> 0:13:45.160
<v Speaker 3>the highest amongst the highest price in the world for cocaine,

0:13:45.320 --> 0:13:47.640
<v Speaker 3>So Australian users are paying a lot of money. I

0:13:47.640 --> 0:13:51.120
<v Speaker 3>would hope absolutely that an impact. Obviously you're the size,

0:13:51.120 --> 0:13:53.199
<v Speaker 3>as you said, such a massive siege, you will drive

0:13:53.600 --> 0:13:56.559
<v Speaker 3>the cost of cocaine for hivintally high and maybe that

0:13:56.600 --> 0:13:59.439
<v Speaker 3>will be an incentive for others to move away from

0:14:00.120 --> 0:14:02.880
<v Speaker 3>which is buy very NAT's extremely harmful. And the other

0:14:02.920 --> 0:14:04.640
<v Speaker 3>part I would say about drugs, it's not just the

0:14:04.679 --> 0:14:07.839
<v Speaker 3>health issues on the users, but the whole microcosm or

0:14:07.840 --> 0:14:11.080
<v Speaker 3>ecosystem of crime and criminality that goes around drug use.

0:14:11.520 --> 0:14:14.600
<v Speaker 3>We're drug sale, drug distribution across the country. So it's

0:14:14.640 --> 0:14:17.840
<v Speaker 3>not just the impact on the user, it's the ecosystem

0:14:17.880 --> 0:14:20.880
<v Speaker 3>of crime and organized crime that sustains it, supports it,

0:14:20.920 --> 0:14:23.320
<v Speaker 3>and profits off it. And ultimately that's what police and

0:14:23.320 --> 0:14:25.040
<v Speaker 3>la enforcement agencies are about dealing with.

0:14:25.680 --> 0:14:28.240
<v Speaker 2>Stephen. I've just got two more questions for you, and

0:14:28.720 --> 0:14:31.680
<v Speaker 2>they relate particularly to questions I think I know our

0:14:31.720 --> 0:14:35.280
<v Speaker 2>audience of young Aussies are thinking. So if we know

0:14:35.400 --> 0:14:39.200
<v Speaker 2>that there is such a substantive withdrawal of cocaine from

0:14:39.280 --> 0:14:43.320
<v Speaker 2>the Australian market. But we still feel like we know

0:14:43.400 --> 0:14:47.640
<v Speaker 2>people around us who are partaking in illicit drug use.

0:14:48.160 --> 0:14:50.000
<v Speaker 2>How do you feel about the risk then that that's

0:14:50.040 --> 0:14:53.200
<v Speaker 2>not cocaine. What more discussions do we need to be

0:14:53.240 --> 0:14:55.880
<v Speaker 2>having about the fact that if the real products didn't

0:14:55.920 --> 0:14:59.560
<v Speaker 2>make it, and the sales of cocaine remains the same,

0:15:00.080 --> 0:15:01.640
<v Speaker 2>that's actually something totally different.

0:15:02.160 --> 0:15:04.800
<v Speaker 3>I completely agree. I mean, the reality is that drugs,

0:15:05.080 --> 0:15:08.280
<v Speaker 3>drugs are adulterated and you don't know what you're using,

0:15:08.320 --> 0:15:10.560
<v Speaker 3>whether it's cocaine, whether it's a methan fetter, mean, whether

0:15:10.600 --> 0:15:13.000
<v Speaker 3>it's a exstasy or others. You actually don't know what

0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:16.840
<v Speaker 3>you're consuming. And I think the removal of this seasure cocaine,

0:15:17.000 --> 0:15:20.200
<v Speaker 3>it will impact the cocaine market. There may be other

0:15:20.240 --> 0:15:23.320
<v Speaker 3>drugs that take the place or purport to take the place.

0:15:23.880 --> 0:15:25.920
<v Speaker 3>That's something I guess, and it's a health issue of

0:15:25.960 --> 0:15:29.440
<v Speaker 3>public health issues as well, that drugs by their nature

0:15:29.440 --> 0:15:31.560
<v Speaker 3>listed drugs, by they're very nature, are not safe to

0:15:31.680 --> 0:15:34.680
<v Speaker 3>use and you don't know what you're consuming. And ultimately

0:15:35.200 --> 0:15:37.160
<v Speaker 3>one part of his law enforcement, the other part is

0:15:37.200 --> 0:15:40.080
<v Speaker 3>health and public knowledge around the risk of taking illicted

0:15:40.160 --> 0:15:42.840
<v Speaker 3>drugs and when you take something what impact it may

0:15:42.880 --> 0:15:46.120
<v Speaker 3>have on your health. So law enforcement is one part

0:15:46.120 --> 0:15:48.440
<v Speaker 3>of the answer. It's not the whole answer, it can't be.

0:15:48.520 --> 0:15:51.920
<v Speaker 3>It is also a public health discussion and you know,

0:15:51.960 --> 0:15:54.760
<v Speaker 3>with your young viewers and listeners, I guess are making

0:15:54.760 --> 0:15:57.120
<v Speaker 3>informed decisions if you do use I listed drugs what

0:15:57.160 --> 0:15:59.360
<v Speaker 3>you're actually consuming because it may not be what you're

0:15:59.360 --> 0:16:00.000
<v Speaker 3>actually thinking.

0:16:00.800 --> 0:16:03.280
<v Speaker 2>Do you have a view on pill testing then and

0:16:03.480 --> 0:16:04.240
<v Speaker 2>cocaine testing?

0:16:04.560 --> 0:16:07.000
<v Speaker 3>Look, I don't really to be honest. I mean, it's

0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:09.720
<v Speaker 3>obviously a matter of debate across the various states and

0:16:09.800 --> 0:16:12.560
<v Speaker 3>territories across the country, and you know these discussions are

0:16:12.640 --> 0:16:16.120
<v Speaker 3>very worthwhile discussions to occur, but I personally don't have

0:16:15.800 --> 0:16:17.840
<v Speaker 3>a view on it one way or the other. Obviously,

0:16:18.360 --> 0:16:21.160
<v Speaker 3>my role from a policing perspective is to limit the

0:16:21.160 --> 0:16:23.480
<v Speaker 3>supply of the drugs in the Australia market and that's

0:16:23.600 --> 0:16:27.320
<v Speaker 3>what we do. But ultimately a policing and law enforcement

0:16:27.360 --> 0:16:29.520
<v Speaker 3>is one part of the answer. Issues like that are

0:16:29.680 --> 0:16:32.040
<v Speaker 3>part of a wider discussion that gets around how to

0:16:32.040 --> 0:16:33.400
<v Speaker 3>deal with this issue in our society.

0:16:33.920 --> 0:16:36.320
<v Speaker 2>Commanded Stephen Jay I've just got one last question in

0:16:36.440 --> 0:16:39.200
<v Speaker 2>full transparency. When I said to our team here at

0:16:39.200 --> 0:16:40.920
<v Speaker 2>the Daily Odds that I was chatting to you and

0:16:40.960 --> 0:16:42.800
<v Speaker 2>if there was anything that they would like to ask.

0:16:43.040 --> 0:16:46.160
<v Speaker 2>There was one question that came up amongst quite a

0:16:46.200 --> 0:16:48.680
<v Speaker 2>few of them, which is what do you do with

0:16:49.240 --> 0:16:51.200
<v Speaker 2>the two point three tons of cocaine?

0:16:51.240 --> 0:16:56.000
<v Speaker 3>Now, yeah, it's a good question, and obviously the media

0:16:56.560 --> 0:16:58.960
<v Speaker 3>reference the fact that on the street the cocaine may

0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:02.680
<v Speaker 3>have been worth seven hundred fifty million dollars. The reality

0:17:02.720 --> 0:17:05.160
<v Speaker 3>is that it as it currently stands, it's worth nothing

0:17:05.160 --> 0:17:08.040
<v Speaker 3>because it's in our custt It will be destroyed. Suffice

0:17:08.080 --> 0:17:11.280
<v Speaker 3>to say, a large amount of drugs like that is destroyed.

0:17:11.920 --> 0:17:14.400
<v Speaker 3>Obviously I can't explain how and where it is destroyed,

0:17:14.400 --> 0:17:17.200
<v Speaker 3>but it will be safefully destroyed in an environment where

0:17:17.440 --> 0:17:19.359
<v Speaker 3>it won't cause any harm of the community. So that

0:17:19.440 --> 0:17:23.240
<v Speaker 3>does occur. It's a significant logistical process and given the

0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:25.679
<v Speaker 3>nature of it, obviously I can't go into great details,

0:17:25.720 --> 0:17:28.240
<v Speaker 3>but rest assured it will be destroyed in a safe environment.

0:17:28.440 --> 0:17:30.560
<v Speaker 2>Stephen Jay, I really appreciate your time and thank you

0:17:30.640 --> 0:17:31.920
<v Speaker 2>so much for joining us this morning.

0:17:32.480 --> 0:17:33.679
<v Speaker 3>I appreciate it. Thanks very much for the.

0:17:33.680 --> 0:17:37.760
<v Speaker 1>Opportunity such a fascinating chat that paints a really clear

0:17:37.800 --> 0:17:40.800
<v Speaker 1>picture of cocaine news in Australia and what authorities are

0:17:40.840 --> 0:17:43.240
<v Speaker 1>doing to crack down on it. Thank you, Sam, and

0:17:43.280 --> 0:17:45.560
<v Speaker 1>thank you so much for listening to this episode of

0:17:45.600 --> 0:17:47.919
<v Speaker 1>The Daily Oz. We will be back this afternoon with

0:17:47.960 --> 0:17:50.720
<v Speaker 1>your afternoon headlines. Until then, have a great day.

0:17:53.480 --> 0:17:55.800
<v Speaker 2>My name is Lily Madden and I'm a proud Dunda

0:17:56.040 --> 0:17:58.600
<v Speaker 2>Bungelung carcutting woman from Gadigal Country.

0:17:59.400 --> 0:18:02.639
<v Speaker 1>The Daily acknowledges that this podcast is recorded on the

0:18:02.720 --> 0:18:05.400
<v Speaker 1>lands of the Gadigal people and pays respect to all

0:18:05.520 --> 0:18:09.200
<v Speaker 1>Aboriginal and Torrestrate island and nations. We pay our respects

0:18:09.320 --> 0:18:12.359
<v Speaker 1>to the first peoples of these countries, both past and present.