A new mother, Alannah Svrakov, has returned to court after being charged over her alleged involvement in a methamphetamine syndicate operating in Melbourne’s outer-eastern suburbs. The case matters because police describe the alleged operation as significant, involving drugs, firearms, cash and luxury goods.

Svrakov, who was pregnant and had recently turned 23 when she and partner Reece Thomas were arrested on 19 May, is charged with trafficking a commercial quantity of methamphetamine. Police allege the pair helped run the operation from a suburban storage unit, while Thomas is accused of having a key role and faces more than 70 charges; more than A$200,000 in cash was reportedly seized alongside other items.