Underworld sources claim Sydney dad Dylan Choup was caught up in Victorian drug syndicate's battle to find stolen stash of meth
The Victorian drug syndicate, known for importing meth in tea packets from Myanmar, discovered the stash went missing last year, one source told news.com.au.
A key figure in Melbourne 'immediately assumed' it was Dylan Choup that robbed him, following his men when they 'reloaded 50 keys (kilograms) of ice,' the source said.
'He also organised two bikie prospects in Melbourne to kidnap and rinse everyone of their gear and money associated with Mr Choup.
'Many associates were kidnapped from their families and then had their faces slashed. No one reported it or spoke to authorities.'
Mr Choup's body was found in remote bushland in Lucas Heights, south of Sydney's CBD, on August 31 last year.
A post-mortem confirmed Mr Choup, a 32-year-old father who leaves behind a partner and baby son, had been fatally shot and the top of his right ear had been severed.
Homicide Squad Commander, Detective Superintendent Joseph Doueihi said police believed Mr Choup was an employee of a Victorian drug trafficking syndicate and had 'fallen foul' for some reason.
'We don't have the exact details - that is also part of our appeal... is to establish what the exact motive may have been,' he said.
'It may be a case of missing drugs or missing money. If I was a betting man, that's what I would say the situation was.'
'(It's) an absolute high level of violence. It's unfortunate that we are seeing this high level of violence.'
Mr Choup was last seen about 6.10pm on Thursday 25 July 2024 in Cabramatta, where he told friends he had a meeting and asked them to wait nearby.
About 6.25pm, CCTV captured Mr Choup meeting with a man on Railway Parade, who appeared to reprimand and slap him.
Both men were then seen walking towards a grey Audi SQ2.
'For Mr Choup just to sit there and be slapped in public would suggest to me that that person that was speaking to him holds a much higher position in that organisation than he did, Det. Supt Doueihi said on Tuesday.
'There was no resistance there, there was no attempt to flee, there was no attempt to strike back. So, it was quite evident from that footage that Mr Choup was in fear of that person.'
As inquiries continue, police have released CCTV of the grey Audi SQ2 was seen walking towards – potentially the same vehicle used in a separate kidnapping in Canley Vale a week earlier.
Detectives have also released CCTV of a white Lexus and white Audi RS3.
The two men captured in the CCTV, seen allegedly moving the vehicles before and after Mr Choup's disappearance are also of interest to police.
Strike Force Hallet was established by State Crime Command's Homicide Squad to investigate the contract crew they believe is also responsible for the kidnapping and torture of a man in Canley Vale, and the attempted murder of another man in Queensland – during which he was buried alive.
The 23-year-old stumbled into a Queensland petrol station covered in dirt and blood before collapsing with a bullet lodged in his brain through his eye socket.
Mr Doueihi said police believed the kidnapping of the first male 'is also linked to a drug trafficking syndicate and something that's gone wrong within that trafficking syndicate'.
'In relation to the attempted murder of the man in Queensland, that unfortunately is not that clear - it remains unclear at the moment, the exact motive, but there is a possibility that that also is linked to (it).'
The United Nations this week issued a warning that Australia is being flooded with large quantities of inexpensive methamphetamine originating from Myanmar.
Organised crime syndicates are capitalising on Myanmar's status as the world's primary production hub for the drug, combined with record low prices and newly established sea routes, to target the lucrative Australian drug market.
A UN Office on Drugs and Crime report revealed methamphetamine seizures jumped by 24 per cent to 236 tonnes in Asia in 2024 with 85 per cent of those seizures occurring in Southeast Asia.
'While these seizures reflect, in part, successful law enforcement efforts, we are clearly seeing unprecedented levels of methamphetamine production and trafficking from the Golden Triangle, in particular Shan State (in Myanmar),' UNODC acting regional representative Benedikt Hofmann said.
Last year Victoria Police, working with the AFP, located and seized 622 green and gold tea packages inside sea cargo which arrived in Melbourne from Malaysia.
In 2022 the Australian Federal Police seized more than two tonnes of the illicit narcotic, which had an estimated street value of more than $1 billion and said that over the past decade, criminals have used the distinctive tea package designs to indicate a product's purity and its source.
Southeast Asian-manufactured methamphetamine has the highest purity compared to other production regions, including Mexico, the Middle East and Central Asia.
Methamphetamine concealed in tea packets weighs about 1kg, which is consistent with regular teas and makes it more difficult to detect.
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