A wannabe drug king pin will spend at least eight years behind bars after police foiled his plan to import 45 kilograms of cocaine into Australia.
The drugs were concealed inside a jukebox when Australian Border Force officers intercepted the delivery from Greece on June 14, 2022.
The officers swapped the real cocaine with a neutral substance, placed a tracking device on the parcel and allowed it to be sent to its intended address in Melbourne's west.
Police recordings captured Ertgrei Gjeka, 41, being told his "jukebox" had arrived from Athens and he organised another associate to pick it up.
When the other man failed to successfully dismantle the parcel, Gjeka and co-offender Vaios Gkourmis intervened, breaking open the jukebox to remove the substituted cocaine.
Police arrested Gjeka and Gkourmis on June 22 after searching their homes and seizing their phones.
County Court Judge Fiona Todd on Friday described Gjeka as a "senior member" of the Australian side of the cocaine operation as she jailed him for up to 12 years and six months.
She noted he was taking orders from people overseas but was an "enthusiastic and faithful servant" who was quick to step in when needed.
"I find that you fundamentally did what you did to profit," Judge Todd said.
The judge accepted Gjeka had pleaded guilty at an early stage to the charge of attempting to possess a commercial quantity of cocaine.
That plea led to a discount on his sentence, Judge Todd said, but drug trafficking left a wave of destruction in the community and it was important those responsible understand the "price of participation was unacceptably high".
She said Gjeka has been jailed twice before for drug offences, including a seven-year term in 2016, so he needed to be deterred from further offending.
"These sentences will keep going up until you stop," the judge said.
Judge Todd accepted jail would be more difficult for Gjeka as he would spend years away from his young son and wife.
But she said given his moral culpability was high, punishment was important.
Gjeka, who has already severed more than two years behind bars, will be eligible for parole after eight years.
His co-offender Gkourmis received the same prison sentence in August 2023.
