Airport bust exposes 4kg of cocaine in traveller's bags

A Spanish-Bolivian dual national has been accused of attempting to smuggle 4kg of cocaine into Australia in his luggage.

The 56-year-old landed at Melbourne Airport on Monday aboard a flight from Doha, Qatar before his bags came to the attention of Australian Border Force officers.

They allegedly discovered a substance concealed in the lining of two suitcases, with testing returning a positive result for cocaine.

The cocaine has an estimated street value of $1.3 million and equates to 20,000 individual street deals, the border force and Australian Federal Police said in a joint statement.

The man faced court on Tuesday charged with possessing and importing a border-controlled drug, which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.

"When individuals travel to Australia with drugs hidden in their possession, it should come as no surprise they will be detected and face the full consequences of the law," AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Rick Briggs said.

He said the AFP was working with law enforcement partners locally and overseas to identify criminal networks using couriers to smuggling drugs into Australia.