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A teenager allegedly linked to Melbourne gangland boss Kaz Hamad’s crew known as the Commission is accused of dealing meth and firearms while already on bail for other offences.
Rivin Muthucumarana, 19, from Fraser Rise, was charged on Saturday with drug and firearm trafficking offences the day after his arrest after a series of police raids.
Operation Eclipse detectives executed the raids as part of an ongoing investigation into one of the suspected orchestrators of Melbourne’s so-called bar wars.
“The investigation commenced in April of this year when police received intelligence in relation to drug and firearms trafficking linked to an offshore syndicate leader,” police said.
Officers seized quantities of suspected cocaine, methamphetamine and ecstasy during the co-ordinated searches of a Keilor Downs business and homes in Port Melbourne and Fraser Rise.
A search of a Porsche SUV also uncovered an array of weapons, including a dagger, counterfeit currency, capsicum spray and two extendable batons.
An 18-year-old Caroline Springs man and Muthucumarana were subsequently arrested. The Caroline Springs man was interviewed by police but was released without charge pending further investigations.
Muthucumarana is accused of trafficking firearms and commercial quantities of methamphetamine between April and July while out on bail. He briefly appeared at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court and was remanded in custody to appear at a later date.
His lawyer, Seda Kilic, said it was her client’s first time in custody. She noted that Muthucumarana has a knee injury and has recently injured his neck.
A bail application might be made at a later date, Kilic said.
The Commission is the dominant force controlling Australia’s multibillion-dollar illicit tobacco market and large-scale drug importations.
Hamad’s gang, also known as the 313, has been linked to dozens of other violent attacks, including shootings and murders.
Operation Eclipse, originally formed in April to investigate the violent rampage targeting Melbourne’s nightlife, is now dedicated to dismantling the Commission’s extensive crime network.
The tobacco kingpin – described by two police sources as “one of the world’s most dangerous men” – was sentenced to life in prison by Iraqi authorities this week.
In his place, 23-year-old Ali al-Huseini took control of the command structure of the 313s.
According to five police and underworld sources, Huseini is one of two gunmen who ambushed Suleiman “Sam” Abdulrahim outside Fawkner cemetery and shot him eight times in 2022. The then-18 year old fled to Iraq less than a day after the shooting, which Abdulrahim survived.
Since Hamad’s arrest, Huseini is alleged by police to have been the prime mover in the resumption of violence in the tobacco market and more than 40 attacks waged against bar and nightclub owners and promoters since March.
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Carla Jaeger is a journalist for The Age. Got a tip? Email carla.jaeger@theage.com.au or message carlajaeger.62 on Signal.Connect via X or email.From our partners
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