Four people have been charged with the importation and possession for supply of a class A controlled drug after a total of around 22 kilograms of cocaine and methamphetamine was found in suitcases at Auckland Airport yesterday.
A statement released by Customs today states that the seizures were made in two separate incidents.
"Two New Zealand nationals, a 30-year-old Hamilton man and a 20-year-old Auckland woman, arrived from Argentina on Sunday morning (May 5).
"A search of their baggage found around seven kilograms of cocaine paste in the bases of their two suitcases. This amount of cocaine would have had a street value of around $2.1 million in New Zealand.
"In an unrelated incident, two Canadian nationals, a 21-year-old woman and a 26-year-old woman, arrived from Hong Kong later on Sunday morning. A search of their baggage found an estimated 14.9 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine in their four suitcases.
"This amount would have had a street value of up to $7.5 million in New Zealand," the statement reads.
The individuals are set to appear in the Manukau District Court today over the charges which carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
SHARE ME