Crate engines from California had a lot more under their rockers than forged piston.
A total of 13 engines, imported by Australian Jared Brown, contained crystal meth with a street value of A$60m (NZ$66m).
While he claimed to have been pushed into importing nearly 50kg of the drug by Mexicans, the judge said it was a crime of greed, not need, and that he had been working on a six-figure salary in Papua New Guinea.
The engines arrived by ship in March 2013 and were taken to Thomastown before Brown and another Australian man retrieved them, dismantled them and retrieved 4.4kg of methamphetamin.
Four months later, federal police found 44.6kg of the drug in nine more engines that also arrived by ship. The drugs were replaced with salt and the duo watched until they collected them, at which point both were arrested.
Although the other man was acquitted by a jury, Brown was this week sentenced to 12 years jail
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