Monday October 1 at 7:30pm (PG)

Tonight on BORDER SECURITY – AUSTRALIA’S FRONTLINE, the stories of two women returning from Vietnam just aren’t adding up Tempers flare in Quarantine after a passenger fails to declare his Fijian souvenirs. And when a mystery ship fails to respond to Customs, there’s a call to action.

Customs officers in Sydney are cross checking the stories of two passengers returning from Vietnam, who seem to have suspicious travel movements. The officers compare their findings and discover that the women’s stories just don’t add up. They then discover the two women are carrying at least $20,000US undeclared cash. Amounts of $10,000 or more have to be declared to minimise the risk of criminal activity like tax evasion, money laundering and counterfeiting. One of the women claims they both went to Vietnam to open a restaurant together. The other says she went there to visit her father and mentions nothing about a restaurant. It doesn’t make sense and the officers are determined to find out the truth.

It’s the job of quarantine officers to inspect all luggage coming into Australia to ensure it’s of no risk. And in Sydney, officers have spotted a passenger that could post a serious quarantine risk. A man returning from Fiji has brought with him ceremonial tapa mats that he’s failed to declare. When an officer tries explaining the seriousness of the situation to the passenger – tempers begin to flare. Tapa mats can be infested with insects so officers need to thoroughly examine it. And upon shaking them, they make a disturbing discovery.

Officers aboard Australian Customs Vessel Botany Bay are patrolling Australia’s northern borders on the lookout for security threats and in particular illegal fishing. A substantial fleet of foreign fishing vessels has just been spotted. Suddenly, the radar is showing an unknown vessel has broken away from the main group and is moving in to Australian waters. The vessel is acting more and more suspiciously. The ship either had no idea what’s in its wake or it’s trying to do a runner. Officers contact border protection control to get authorisation to board the vessel. Customs has no ideas what could be waiting for them when they approach a vessel as curious as this one. What will their investigation uncover?

Narrated by GRANT BOWLER, BORDER SECURITY- AUSTRALIA’S FRONTLINE takes viewers behind the scenes of our Immigration, Customs and Quarantine departments.