Australian police seized the country’s largest haul of cocaine aboard a fishing boat that had broken down near the coast of Queensland, arresting 13 people alleged to be part of a drug-smuggling syndicate.

Australian police seized a record 2.3 tons of cocaine and arrested 13 people in raids after the suspects' boat broke down off the coast of Queensland, authorities said Monday.

Australian authorities seized over two tons of cocaine over the weekend worth nearly $500 million after the fishing boat that smugglers used to sail the drugs into Australia broke down — the largest ever seizure of cocaine in Australia.

Australian Police have seized 2.3 tonnes of cocaine from a broken-down boat off the coast of Queensland, authorities said on Monday. Eleven men and two juveniles were arrested, including the vessel's crew and others waiting on the shore to collect the illegal shipment.

Australian police say they have seized a record 2.3 tons of cocaine from a fishing boat off the coast of Queensland

Australian police seized a record 2.3 tons of cocaine from a fishing boat and arrested 13 people in raids. The drugs had a sale value of $494 million and investigators told reporters in Brisbane that the drugs were transported from an unidentified South American country.

This is the biggest haul of cocaine ever seized in Australia, with an estimated resale value of AUS $760m (£388m), police said. The drugs came from an unidentified country in South America, investigators in Brisbane said on Monday.