Australian law requires that all films presented in theaters and offered for sale or rent be classified by the government. Minimum-age requirements are legally enforced, unlike in the United States where issuance of film ratings and compliance with them are voluntary. Although possession of adult material is legal in all of Australia, sales are only legal in parts of the country.
When police raided the store, they reported finding an estimated 7,000 DVDs and 1,000 VHS videos that had not been classified.
"[The] pornographic movie titles were all on display throughout the store," a police spokesperson told reporters. "All the items seized will undergo classification, and charges are expected to be laid in the future."
Police said the seizure followed a similar raid the week before in another Sydney suburb that also collected thousands of unclassified movies and more than three liters of amyl nitrate, a controlled chemical that can be used as a sex aid.
"There are not believed to be any links between the two stores," the police spokesperson said.
