During a birthday holiday to Australia, a French-Canadian national claimed he was betrayed and deceived by a friend into a role in importing 153kg of methamphetamine.
But a judge has blasted Alexandre Forcade and labelled him a "complete liar" undone by listening devices which show he knew exactly what he was involved in.
Forcade was jailed for 18-and-a-half years on Friday by Victorian County Court Judge Michael Tinney after he admitted attempting to import a commercial quantity of ice in January 2020.
The drugs had a wholesale value up to $19 million and could have sold for $69 million in the illicit retail market.
He was born in France, raised in Canada and was studying in Malaysia when he arrived in Australia days before his 26th birthday.
Forcade claimed it was a trip to celebrate the date, but his arrival coincided with a shipment of silver concentrate from Mexico - and more than 120 kilograms of pure methamphetamine hidden amongst it.
Border authorities and federal police intercepted the import and replaced the packages of crystals. They installed listening devices in Forcade's hotel room and a car he rented.
After his arrest Forcade claimed details about drugs in the shipment were dropped on him overnight and out of the blue in a coded text message from a friend and that he voiced his frustration over the bombshell in a series of deleted texts.
"That is just totally foreign to any normal human reaction," the judge said, suggesting a phone call and a fierce argument would be the real reaction to such an event.
Surely the texts, which would have demonstrated his innocence, would have been preserved forever if they had actually existed, he said.
"You are a complete liar and I reject virtually everything you have said in your evidence ... it was complete nonsense," he said.
He described his version of events, given to Australian Federal Police officers after his arrest, as a "cock and bull story".
Forcade had adapted remarkably quickly for someone who had apparently just learned of the existence of the drugs, he said, also rejecting the man's claim he had only used ice once himself.
"You give a pretty decent imitation of someone licking their lips looking at the crystals in the bag," he said.
Listening devices captured Forcade, now 27, laughing and describing the import as "so fun".
He was to be paid $US30,000 for his part as the man on the ground for the international syndicate - half in Australia and half on his return to Vancouver.
Judge Tinney said while Forcade was not in a great financial state he was not destitute, and financial reward was the only explanation for his actions.
He said Forcade had many opportunities to pause, reflect and step away from what he was doing but regrettably he had not.
"And your life will change forever as a result," he said.
Forcade must spend at least 14-and-a-half years behind bars before he's eligible for parole.
