The Australian Border Force (ABF) and Australian Federal Police (AFP), with intelligence generation from the Fintel Alliance’s Collaborative Analytics Hub, successfully foiled a sophisticated criminal operation. 

In December 2024, following intelligence generation around illicit cash activity, industry raised reporting on a NSW entity which was then referred to the AFP led Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT). 

The CACT was able to use financial intelligence to identify the NSW entity suspected of using money laundering to funnel proceeds of crime into Australian property.

In August 2025, a separate ABF investigation began when 4 million illicit cigarettes were found concealed behind a wall of bricks in a container that arrived in Fremantle, Western Australia. 

AUSTRAC identified the convergence of the two investigations, leading to the establishment of Operation SMOKEHAZE. 

The operation resulted in the seizure of over 4 million illicit cigarettes and over $24 million in crime proceeds, including two residential properties, a commercial factory, $2 million in cash, luxury handbags and a Toyota Hilux. 

This outcome emphasises the importance and real-world impact of your reporting. Without this data, we would not have been able to provide the actionable intelligence to law enforcement and disrupt this sophisticated criminal operation. 

Read more about reporting on our website.