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A 21-year-old New Zealand man will appear in a Sydney court charged with 20kg of cocaine into Australia concealed in his luggage.

officers allegedly detected the illicit drugs on Saturday after selecting the man for a baggage examination when he arrived at Sydney Airport on a flight from the United States.

They allegedly found 22 vacuum-sealed packages of a white substance hidden in the man’s suitcase.

Initial testing of the substance returned a positive result for cocaine and the ABF alerted the Australian Federal Police.

The man has been charged with one count of importing a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug.

The man is facing a life sentence if found guilty of importing the drugs. Photo / Supplied

The offence carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Australian authorities say the amount of cocaine found could have been sold as almost 100,000 street deals with an estimated value of $6.5 million.

AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Luke Needham said the AFP worked closely with ABF and other partners to ensure air travel and airports were not used as a criminal supply chain.

“This man is the third person charged by the AFP in the past fortnight for allegedly trying to smuggle illicit drugs into Australia hidden in luggage,” Needham said.

“The AFP and its partners are working tirelessly to disrupt all levels of the drug trade and stop anyone who tries to profit at the expense of our community.”

A New Zealand national has been charged with importing 20kg of cocaine into Australia hidden in his luggage. Photo / Supplied/ ABF

ABF Superintendent Elke West said that intuition had played a part in the decision for ABF officers to conduct a random baggage examination.

“Our officers are trained to detect changes in behaviour and body language and rely on their instincts when observing passengers,” said West.

The man will appear in the Downing Centre Local Court today.

Two older Kiwis are also facing serious charges after allegedly trying to import drugs into Australia.

In November 2023, a 70-year-old man was charged over an alleged heroin import.

The man was accused of concealing about 5kg of heroin inside his baggage in an alleged attempt to import the illicit drugs into Melbourne.

Months earlier with 2kg of heroin in his possession when he arrived on a flight from Thailand.