Mostafa Baluch alleged drug kingpin is captured by police after two-week manhunt 

Accused drug kingpin Mostafa Baluch has been dramatically captured after he was found hidden in the boot of a Mercedes being transported across the NSW/Queensland border in a shipping container.

The fugitive, who allegedly cut his ankle monitor after being granted bail for a drug importation charge and spent two weeks on the run, was captured by NSW Police at Tweed Heads near the Queensland border at 1am.

Police had stopped the truck as it crossed the border and searched the container on the back of the vehicle, where they located the 33-year-old man hiding inside a grey Mercedes.

‘Police banged on the side of the truck and someone banged back. He was sitting inside a Mercedes Benz inside a container on the back of a truck,’ Detective Superintendent Rob Crichlow told 2GB breakfast host Ben Fordham.

‘We’ll bring him back by air this afternoon.’ 

Photos released by police show Baluch sitting on the side of the road moments after his dramatic arrest. 

Baluch was arrested and taken to Southport Watch House, where a warrant was executed.

Detective Superintendent Crichlow paid tribute to investigators who have spent the last two weeks working around the clock to track Baluch down.

Officers were acting on information from investigators when they stopped the truck.

Organised Crime Squad detectives are now travelling to Queensland to seek Baluch’s extradition to NSW when he appears at Southport Magistrates Court later on Wednesday.

The arrest comes after police seized cocaine and more than $250,000 in cash after raiding two Sydney homes in Yagoona and Potts Hill in the city’s south-west on Thursday night as part of national and international efforts to find Baluch. 

Mostafa Baluch (pictured) has been captured by NSW Police after a two-week manhunt

Baluch was found in the boot of this grey Mercedes (pictured) in a shipping container on the back of a truck crossing the NSW/Queensland border at Tweed Heads

‘What we are finding as we chase this man to bring him back to justice is we are identifying a whole range of offences and a wider criminal group,’ Det Supt Critchlow said on Friday.

‘The longer he is out the more pressure he is placing upon those he cares about including his family, his friends and his associates.’ 

Baluch, 33, was last seen on the night of October 25 on Sydney’s northern beaches.

Last month he was granted bail and released from custody, with strict bail conditions, after he was charged with a string of drug offences over a 900kg shipment of cocaine into Australia.  

Police seized more than $250,000 cash, about 200 grams of cocaine, 485 grams of an unknown substance, mobile phones, and an electronic money counter at the two Sydney homes last Thursday. 

Baluch pictured outside his home in Mona Vale on October 25, hours before the international drug lord disappeared

Det Supt Critchlow revealed at the time the manhunt is going ‘very well’ and that police believe the were ‘pretty close behind’ the fugitive.

‘We’re putting a lot of pressure on people who know him, and it’s going very, very well,’ he said.

‘He is very focused on leaving the jurisdiction…I can tell you for certain he is seeking assistance from those who will fly him out of NSW and out of the country,’ he said. 

Officers from NSW Police, the Australian Federal Police and Australian Border Force were involved in the investigation.

Inquiries are continuing.