Ryszard Wilk, brought back to New Zealand in 2019 to face charges, has pleaded not guilty. Photo / Interpol
Ryszard Wilk, brought back to New Zealand in 2019 to face charges, has pleaded not guilty. Photo / Interpol
Detectives and a Customs officer secretly broke into an apartment one block away from the court where three men now stand trial accused of importing cocaine.
So was surging cocaine consumption, with a detectivesaying the formerly "high society" niche narcotic was now drug of choice for a wide range of people.
Polish men Patryk Lukasz Lukasik and Ryszard Wilk and Russian sailor Aleksandr Cherushev have pleaded not guilty at the High Court in Auckland to importing cocaine.
Jurors heard Wilk's son Ralph, already convicted of drug supply, attracted attention from Customs and the police National Organised Crime Group.
Detective Sergeant John Sowter said another covert search was carried out three days later.
Jurors heard piles of cash in big denominations were found but again, investigators did not linger in Wilk's unit.
"The purpose of the covert warrant is to try and make it look like we haven't been in someone's apartment," Sowter said.
"We try to leave things as intact as we possibly can, just so there's no indicators when a suspect returns to their location and notices things have moved.
"We like to get in quick and get out as quick as we can."
Eventually, the cash was counted. Sowter said it tallied up to NZ$116,100 and US$10,000.
The court heard police spent months tracking the Wilks across the North Island.
"Was this 24/7 stuff from the movies?" prosecutor Brian Dickey asked.
In 2017, police found cocaine and black plastic bags partially buried at Auckland's Bastion Point. Photo / Dean Purcell
"We compete with other investigations going on," Sowter said.
"We'll also just try to randomly put surveillance on people because often you won't pick anything up off the communications."
"We still have our person going on the dark web and ordering small amounts of cocaine but certainly in my time, quantities of drugs have increased dramatically."
Sowter said "a vast array of people" now used cocaine and increasingly large consignments were being imported.
Police and Customs staff broke into Ralph Wilk's apartment at The Quadrant, a one minute walk away from the front doors of the High Court in Auckland. Photo / John Weekes
Jurors have heard about screeds of translated conversations and other content police found on seized devices.
Some people discussed in seized communications were known only as Seraphim, J23 and Baldie.
Sowter, quizzed on Baldie's identity, replied: "There's a few bald gentlemen involved in this case but we don't know who they're talking about."
The court heard the Wilks engaged in tourist activities, visiting places including Rotorua.
