Seven people have been arrested including Killer Beez gang members after 265 kilograms of methamphetamine were seized in a joint customs and police investigation dubbed Operation Papyrus.
The arrests were made across the Auckland region yesterday, police said, after the shipment was identified and seized in the United States in February.
A police statement said the operation has been investigating methamphetamine and cocaine importations for a year.
"Police worked alongside our international partners to stop this shipment," detective inspector Tom Gollan of the National Organised Crime Group said.
"Operation Papyrus found 'insiders' within the transport and logistics industry were allegedly working with members of the Killer Beez gang to facilitate the drug imports.
"Our investigation is continuing into this aspect and further arrests and charges cannot be ruled out."
The arrests included five men aged 29, 31, 35, 44, 55 and two women aged 31 and 32.
Customs NZ manager of investigations Cam Moore said "this is a satisfying result".
"That substantial amount of methamphetamine could be expected to produce around 13 million individual common doses which, if sold on the street, could be worth approximately $91 million," he said.
"We're very pleased to have disrupted that level of illegal drug activity and the profits which the criminals involved were hoping to make through the harm they could have caused in communities across Aotearoa New Zealand.
"Customs will continue to support investigations, particularly around trusted insiders in the transport and logistics industries who were willing to risk their privileged employment status to help this organised criminal drug smuggling operation."
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