Australian police arrested four men after 662 kilograms of methamphetamine was found hidden inside a shipment of toilet paper rolls.

Australian Border Force police said on Thursday that the shipment arrived in Melbourne via sea cargo from Malaysia on October 4.

Police said in a statement that officers identified “anomalies” during an x-ray at the border.

The officers found 622 green and gold tea packages, each weighing 1 kilogram, further concealed within a pallet of toilet paper.

The seized drugs have a street value estimated at almost 560 million Australian dollars ($359 million), police said.

Two 33-year-old Chinese nationals, a Malaysian national, 34, and a Hong Kong national, 32, were arrested overnight on Wednesday.

Police said two men were arrested as they separately attempted to board flights to leave Australia.

The men were all charged with one count of attempting to possess a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug. The offence carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Victoria Police Detective Acting Superintendent Dan Ryan said police remained focused on stopping illicit drugs from ending up in the community.

“The use of methamphetamine per capita in Australia is matched by no other nation in the world and the devastating and tragic damage caused by its use ripples throughout the community,” Mr Ryan said.

Mr Ryan added that the harm the drug inflicted on the community could have significant and life-changing impacts on a range of innocent parties.

(dpa/NAN)