A stolen Holden Commodore is one of many items seized during raids on multiple properties in Melbourne last week, though it's not what will get the mainstream headlines.
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On Thursday, March 20, officers from the Caulfield Divisional Response Unit, Mornington Peninsula and Moorabbin Crime Investigation Units and the Dog Squad executed warrants in Braeside, Hampton, Moorabbin, and Port Melbourne, following a five-month investigation into drug trafficking.
According to Victoria Police, a search of an automotive centre on Chesterville Road, Moorabbin uncovered two vehicles, one of which was a Holden Commodore allegedly stolen from Dandenong a fortnight ago – just one of many vehicles being targeted in the current epidemic of vehicle thefts in Victoria.
Also at the address was a trailer and boat, both allegedly stolen from Carrum Downs in April 2023.
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Unfortunately, vehicle theft is at a record high in Victoria, and valuable cars such as late-model, Australian-built Holden Commodores are among those being targeted by criminals.
While some Commodores and other stolen cars are being rebirthed, a number of them are being used to commit other crimes, as appears to have been the case here.
As a part of the raids last week, police allegedly located approximately 1kg of MDMA – valued at about $250,000 – at a Hampton home, also seizing quantities of cocaine, ketamine and steroids, along with fraudulent identification and several prohibited weapons, a ballistics vest, and multiple rounds of ammunition.
At another home in Port Melbourne, an imitation AK-47, quantities of cocaine, MDMA, multiple vials and packets of testosterone, and electronic devices were seized.
A raid on a factory in Braeside led to the seizure of two commercial pill press machines and other equipment consistent with the manufacture of drugs, as well as 55 cannabis plants, gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB), and ammunition.
Four men aged between 18 and 53 were arrested, with the eldest trio bailed to appear in Moorabbin Magistrates' Court on 6 June, while the youngest was released pending summons for weapons-related offences.
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Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
