Hanoi pilot held in Australia with suitcase full of dollars

Tran Dinh Dan was arrested on June 3 at Sydney international airport.

The Australian Federal Police officially asked narcotic police in Vietnam to cooperate in investigating the case, allegedly in connection with a transnational drug trafficking ring, the news portal Dan Tri said.

A police statement confirmed the arrest of a Vietnamese national but did not disclose his profession.

"A 37-year-old Vietnamese national was charged on 4th June after customs officers at Sydney airport discovered he was concealing more than half a million Australian dollars in his suitcase," the police said in a statement.

"He was charged with one count of money laundering and one count of failing to declare excess currency."

Reports in Vietnam said police found around 560,000 US dollars (413,000 Australian dollars).

They quoted the Australian police as saying the pilot admitted he was given the cash in Vietnam and was transporting it for a drug trafficking ring.

The money was likely to be laundered or reinvested in other illegal activities, they added.

Police are seeking several other people allegedly connected to the case.