ONE of the men arrested over an alleged French drug ring was covertly recorded boasting how he smuggled the narcotics into Australia in hair gel tins.

Kevin Bianchi, 26, who was in the country on a student visa, was one of five men police allege were part of a drug supply syndicate that saw young French “runners” deliver drugs, usually MDMA, throughout Sydney.

The alleged ring was being operated from the inner-Sydney suburb of Darlinghurst and the drug runners advertised their business using a Facebook page called “Vegetables Australia”, which was created for drug dealers around Australia to advertise their products using code words.

According to a statement of police seen by news.com.au, Capsicums were caps of MDMA, broccoli was a cover for cannabis and light salad dressing for LSD. Drug users could order by texting or calling the syndicate’s “run phone” that was advertised on the “Vegetables Australia” Facebook page. Another option was to use encrypted messaging app Wickr.

Police bugged the Haymarket apartment of Florian Chamon, 23, who was also in Australia on a student visa, and allege they observed and listened as syndicate members handled tens of thousands of dollars and discussed how they obtained and moved the drugs.

On March 14, Bianchi was bugged saying to an unknown person the method he used to get drugs past border security.

“[He] tells the unknown person that he conceals drugs inside hair gel containers and he imports 50 inside.

Bianchi says, “I have done it ten times now and they all got through”. He says you need to tape the hair gel containers lid down so they don’t open in transit,” the police facts allege.

It is also alleged the surveillance also captured Chamon dealing drugs to Damien Masset, 24, another French national on a student visa.

Other alleged syndicate members were Mourad Hannachi, 44, who is accused of directing the runners from a plush room at the lavish Hyde Park Plaza, and Walter Williams Wandji Watchou who allegedly dealt 31g of MDMA at Surry Hills just before Christmas last year and 28g in darlinghurst on January 4.

The group was arrested last Friday when officers part of Strike Force Oramzi raided Masset and Bianchi’s eastern suburbs home, the Hyde Park hotel room, and Chamon’s apartment, where $168,000 was found in a shoebox.

Police allege they found a further $13,000 cash in the Hyde Park room and 599 tabs of LSD.

Chamon and Hannachi were both charged with directing the activities of a criminal group and supplying a prohibited drug, Bianchi and Wandji Watchou face charges including supply a prohibited drug and participate in criminal group and Masset is charged with participating in a criminal group and dealing with property suspected being the proceeds of crime.

The group had their matters mentioned briefly in Central Local Court on Thursday before they were adjourned until June. No pleas were entered and none applied for bail.

Lawyers for Chamon are expected to apply for bail on Monday while Bianchi will make a bid for release on April 23.