The raid, near the country’s main international airport at Nadi, was “one of the biggest seizures ever” in the country, Fiji’s acting police commissioner, Juki Fong Chew, said in a statement.
Chew provided few details in a brief statement to OCCRP, saying only that the drugs were stored in 797 “medium size containers.” He declined to say if anyone had been arrested in the raid, where the drugs originated or where they were headed.
“We are in the initial stage of the investigation. As we proceed along, the questions you have raised may be answered,” Chew said via email.
International law enforcement have raised concerns about the growing trade in drugs such as cocaine and meth through Fiji, a Pacific islands hub that sits between producers in the Americas and some of the world’s most lucrative drug markets in Australia and New Zealand. The recently seized drugs would be equivalent to more than a quarter of Australia’s annual meth consumption.
A joint investigation by OCCRP and partners in October revealed how the drug trade through the country was allowed to fester under the country’s previous government.
Experts say that the booming Pacific drug trade could destabilize small countries in the Pacific. Local authorities in Fiji have also complained about rising social problems they blame on the local consumption of meth.
