UK actress, 2 others charged after Australian authorities seize 320kg meth consignment from Ghana

• Australian authorities seized 320kg of methamphetamine hidden in a charcoal shipment from Ghana.

• British actress Emaa Hussen and two others have been charged in connection with the alleged drug importation.

• The drugs were valued at about A$296 million, and investigations are ongoing.

According to the Australian Federal Police (AFP), the drugs were discovered in two shipping containers that arrived at Port Botany in Sydney in April 2026. The containers were declared as carrying bags of charcoal from Ghana.

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Officials from the Australian Border Force (ABF) became suspicious after detecting irregularities in the consignment during routine inspections. Subsequent X-ray screening and testing revealed a crystalline substance that was later confirmed through forensic analysis to be approximately 320kg of methamphetamine.

Authorities estimate the seized drugs had a potential street value of about A$296 million and could have been distributed in more than 3.2 million individual deals across Australia.

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The AFP initially identified one of the suspects only as a UK national. However, the BBC later reported that the woman is 34-year-old British actress Emaa Hussen, who previously appeared in the EastEnders spin-off E20 and the 2013 Jason Statham film Hummingbird.

Hussen appeared before a Sydney court on Thursday and has been charged with attempting to import a commercial quantity of methamphetamine into Australia, an offence that carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. She was earlier refused bail and is expected to return to court in August.

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Investigators allege Hussen attended a storage facility in Sydney's western suburbs and supervised the unloading of the shipment after it had been delivered as part of a controlled police operation.

Some of the bags were later transported to a property in Blacktown, where officers recovered dozens of empty bags believed to have previously contained the drugs, along with electronic devices and a notebook.

In a related development, an Adelaide-based woman, 30, and a man, 32, were also arrested and charged over their alleged role in the operation.

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Australian authorities allege the pair used false identities to rent storage facilities intended to house the shipment. They have been remanded in custody and are scheduled to reappear before an Adelaide court in September.

AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Trevor Robinson said investigations were continuing to identify those behind the international drug trafficking operation.

“This operation highlights the agility of the AFP and our partners to investigate complex matters across jurisdictions and stop organised crime syndicates in their tracks,” he said.

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He added that the seizure had prevented an estimated 3.2 million drug deals from reaching Australian streets.

Australian Border Force Superintendent Jared Leighton said criminal syndicates often go to great lengths to disguise illicit drugs, including concealing them in everyday cargo such as charcoal.

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The AFP said investigations into the suppliers and key facilitators of the shipment remain ongoing. Authorities have not indicated whether any arrests have been made in Ghana.