A former Melbourne crime figure, Kazem Hamad, has been sentenced to life imprisonment in Iraq for drug trafficking. Hamad, also known as Kadhim Malik Hamad Rabah al-Hajami, was deported from Australia in 2023.
Iraq's National Center for International Judicial Cooperation (NCIJC) announced this week that the Karkh Criminal Court in Baghdad found Hamad guilty of importing narcotics into both Iraq and Australia. The NCIJC described him as one of the most wanted individuals by Iraqi and international judiciaries, linking him to large-scale heroin smuggling and transnational organized crime.
According to statements, Hamad is associated with prominent organized crime gangs in Australia, responsible for activities including shootings, murders, kidnappings, extortion, and drug imports. The NCIJC noted his alleged involvement in activities that included the Melbourne tobacco wars and firebombings targeting Jewish synagogues.
In January, Hamad was described as "one of the most dangerous wanted men in the world" by an unspecified statement, cited by the NCIJC. His conviction and sentencing in Iraq follow his deportation from Australia the previous year.