The Australian Crime Commission, a government agency, has published its 2011 report on organized crime in the country. The report states that Mexican drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) are increasingly taking control of Australia's cocaine market. According to the commission these DTOs are not only big suppliers of the drug, but also manage money laundering operations.
An excerpt from the report:
The world is now moving towards a multi-polar political model of global power and there has been a shift towards the Asia-Pacific region as the power base. At the same time, non-state entities, including multinational corporations, pressure groups, the larger organised crime groups and terrorist or insurgency groups, are projecting power and influence that at times demands attention on a global scale. The Italian N’drangheta, which has an Australian footprint, has an estimated annual turnover of A$60 billion. The combined annual turnover of the Mexican drug cartels, which are increasingly exporting cocaine to Australia, is estimated to exceed $10 billion -- placing them on the same revenue footing as some Fortune 500 companies.
[...]
[C]riminal groups from, or with links to, Central and South America -- and those groups already established in the Australian cocaine market -- are expected to maintain a competitive advantage in trafficking the drug into Australia. Mexican criminals have become more prevalent as principals in the importation and supply of cocaine and associated money laundering. There is concern that they may also import the violent practices which have been reported overseas.
To read full report click here (pdf).
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