EastEnders spin-off actress Emaa Hussen accused in 320kg meth import case in Australia

A British actress, who appeared in an EastEnders spin-off and a Jason Statham film, has been charged in Australia over her alleged involvement in an attempt to smuggle 320kg of methamphetamine into the country from West Africa.

Emaa Hussen, 34, appeared in a Sydney court on Thursday, June 18, after being charged with attempting to import a commercial quantity of methamphetamine into Australia. She is facing a maximum penalty of life imprisonment if proved guilty.

Police allege Emaa, along with a couple from South Australia, tried to import the drugs hidden inside bags of charcoal in shipping containers sent from Ghana. The drugs have an estimated street value of A$296m (US$208m; £157m).

Hussen has been refused bail in an earlier court hearing and is due back in court in August.

Australian Federal Police say the investigation began in April after border authorities detected irregularities in two shipping containers that arrived at Sydney’s Port Botany from Ghana. The containers were declared as charcoal, but after being X-rayed, officers found a “white crystallised substance” inside the shipment. Further testing confirmed it was methamphetamine.

Police then removed the drugs before the containers were transported to a storage facility in Girraween, in Sydney’s western suburbs. Investigators allege Hussen later went to the facility and supervised as several men unpacked the containers.

They say bags were then loaded into a car and driven to a house in Blacktown, where police later arrested Hussen. Officers also seized electronic devices and a notebook during the arrest.

As part of the same investigation, police arrested a 30-year-old woman and a 32-year-old man in Adelaide. They are accused of using false identities to rent storage units in Sydney where the drugs were delivered.