An Australian Border Force supervisor could face life behind bars if she’s found guilty of allegedly helping to smuggle $1.3million worth of cocaine into the country.
Rita Gargiulo, 50, and Mount Pritchard man Cosmo Commisso, 67, are accused of conspiring to import 6.9kg of cocaine into Australia.
Gargiulo was allegedly bribed by Commisso with luxury items, including Burberry and Louis Vuitton handbags and high-heels, in return for ‘the safe passage of the parcel’, the ABF will allege in court.
In her role as supervisor at the ABF’s base adjacent to Sydney Airport at Mascot, Gargiulo could search cargo and trawl through internal systems to see if packages had been flagged.
Gargiulo and Commisso were arrested on Tuesday and charged with bribery and smuggling offences including aiding and abetting the importation of border-controlled drugs – which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
The ABF will allege Commisso paid Gargiulo to provide information about a ‘dummy’ shipment of cosmetics which arrived in Australia from Malaysia on February 21.
Gargiulo then allegedly provided advice on how the airfreighted 6.9kg cocaine package – with an estimated street value of $1.3million – could get through customs.
Commisso and Gargiulo allegedly exchanged flirtatious messages in the months leading up to the alleged drug smuggling, in texts seen by the Daily Telegraph.
Rita Gargiulo, 50, is understood to be a supervisor at the ABF’s Mascot base
Police alleged 67-year-old Cosmo Commisso has links to Sydney’s underworld
Two other men, aged 25 and 48, have also been arrested and charged with attempting to possess border-controlled drugs.
The charges come after the AFP announced a new task force to specifically target public officials who work as ‘double agents’.
‘We used to call these alleged offenders trusted insiders,’ AFP Deputy Commissioner Crime Ian McCartney said.
‘However, they are really acting like double dealers by working both sides.’
