One of five alleged kingpin people smugglers arrested in dawn raids and accused of organising 132 illegal boat arrivals in Australia has appeared in court in Perth.
Barkat Ali Wahide, 31, made a brief appearance in Perth Magistrates Court on Thursday, where he was accused of two counts of organising or facilitating the illegal entry of two people.
Wahide, an Afghan national, told the court he had been in immigration detention for 17 months.
Magistrate Barbara Lane bailed him back to the custody of the Department of Immigration, and Wahide was told he would appear in court again next month.
Revealing the arrests earlier in the day, Australian Federal Police (AFP) assistant commissioner Steve Lancaster said more arrests were certain after the AFP executed search warrants in Victoria, South Australia, WA and NSW.
Three Afghan nationals, a Pakistani and an Iranian are all facing people-smuggling charges, which carry penalties of up to 10 years jail and a $110,000 fine.
Four of the five came to Australia on boats between May 2012 and July this year, the AFP said. Three were in immigration detention.
Mr Lancaster alleged those arrested were actively involved in recruiting people overseas and in collection and transfer of money.
He said the arrests were the culmination of a series of investigations in Australia and overseas over the last year.
