Three “trusted insiders” have been charged after being allegedly involved in an attempt to smuggle more than half a tonne of cocaine into Sydney.

On Sunday, a joint agency taskforce picked up the trio after police discovered a shipping container carrying 506 kilograms of cocaine.

The Multi Agency Strike Team, made up of investigators from the Australian Federal Police and NSW Police Force, had launched Strike Force Paiporta in April to target a criminal syndicate who allegedly had members working inside Sydney ports to facilitate the importation of commercial quantities of illegal drugs.

“MAST investigators received intelligence that a group was allegedly planning to remove illicit drugs from an imported shipping container while it was stored at a sea freight facility in Sydney,” the AF

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