A man has appeared in Auckland District Court on Monday charged with attempting to smuggle $9.3 million in methamphetamine concealed in welding machines into New Zealand.
It's alleged the 31-year-old was linked to six separate air freight consignments of methamphetamine concealed in four welding machines intercepted at the border between January and May 2022, Customs New Zealand said in a statement on Monday.
The methamphetamine was concealed in four welding machines, each containing approximately 12 kilograms of the drug, ink cartridges containing approximately eight kilograms of the drug, and an air cooler that hid approximately six kilograms of methamphetamine.
The drugs - weighing 62kgs and valued at approximately $9.3 million - were believed by Customs to have been destined to the man who's been charged.
The man appeared in court on Monday morning charged with importing a Class A drug following his arrest on Thursday.
Customs investigations manager Cam Moore said the arrest is a result of effective targeting and detection at the border, backed up with first class intelligence.
“Customs is working across all points of entry in Aotearoa to ensure drug smugglers are prevented from getting their drugs into market," he said.
"These seizures could have caused enormous harm, damaging lives and funding further crimes. We won’t let the drug smugglers exploit New Zealand for their own gains.”
The man had an arrest warrant against him for breaching bail conditions and failing to appear in court on prior drugs charges.
He is due to reappear in court for sentencing on October 7, 2022.
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