Known Fijian dealer, Yapese woman, and Chinese nationals nabbed in major drug crackdown

Police have arrested a 28-year-old Yapese woman, a known Fijian drug dealer, and five Chinese nationals in nationwide raids on Tuesday.

Police confirmed that the raids were conduct­ed in the Central, Southern and Western Divisions by the Fiji Police Serious Organised Crime and Intel­ligence Department, Fiji Detector Dog Unit, Police Mobile Force and Fiji Immigration Department.

Seized from the raids conducted in Flagstaff and Rewa Street were white substances, confirmed to be methamphetamine following analysis conducted by the Fiji Police Forensics Science Services.

It is believed police were following the intel more than a year ago.

Suva raids

Along Rewa Street in Suva, two concrete houses were cordoned off and under police guard yesterday following the raid by police and a team from the Immigration Depart­ment on Tuesday.

Among the illegal items seized were more than two kilograms of illicit substances. In one of the houses, two vehicles were parked inside the fenced compound.

Fiji Sun investigations concluded that the two vehicles, a Subaru XV and a Toyota Sai, are registered to two Chinese nationals ‑ a 27-year-old female, and a 45-year-old male. One of the vehicles is registered under an address in the Western Division, which was also raided on Tuesday.

Police arrested Chinese nationals, a Yapese female and a Fijian man, who is known to police for his in­volvement in the sale and use of il­licit drugs.

It is believed the Chinese nation­als worked in a prominent hotel in Suva. The owner of the prominent hotel also owns the raided proper­ties.

This masthead visited the hotel to get a comment from the owner yesterday, but was informed by the hotel manager that the hotel owner was “busy and unavailable”.

The hotel owner is known to for­mer and current Members of Par­liament, with some sharing friend­ship links.

This masthead was reliably in­formed that the Yapese female, who is originally from Palau, is allegedly linked to an Asian drug syndicate. She is believed to be the supplier of illicit substances in this case.

Similar to the Chinese nationals, she resides in Fiji. Her links to Fiji include having a fiancé, who is em­ployed as a bartender at a popular nightclub in Suva.

West raids

Three separate police raids were carried out in Nadi.

Three Chinese nationals were ar­rested on Tuesday in Votualevu and Martintar, and one Chinese national arrested in Viseisei, Vuda, yesterday.

In Votualevu, police had inter­cepted a vehicle with two Chinese nationals found with six 28 grams of small zip lock plastic bags con­taining illicit substances.

The street value of the combined zip lock substances is around $168,000.

In a home of a Chinese national in Martintar, police seized one zip lock plastic bag containing 7.32 grams of illicit substances, valued at $7230.

Yesterday, police arrested another Chinese national, who was found with a flask containing six zip lock plastic, and another flask contain­ing seven zip lock plastic bags, both weighed over more than 500 grams.

The street value of both substanc­es is $253,670 and $253,050 respec­tively.

Comments

Attempts to get a comment from the Chinese Embassy in Fiji were unsuccessful. We were informed that no response would be provid­ed by the time this edition went to press.

Minister for Immigration Viliame Naupoto said the Chinese nationals all have valid permits. He insisted that other “stuff” that were found would best be addressed by Trans­national Crime Unit.

When contacted over the phone, his permanent secretary Aliki Salusalu said they would need more details from the ministry’s border team.

He said the ministry would re­spond today.

Meanwhile, Minister for Policing Ioane Naivalurua hailed the suc­cessful raids carried out by the Fiji Police Force.

“That’s a reflection of an organi­zation that is moving, working, and committed to clean out our commu­nity from thugs and criminals that are breaking the law,” he said.

Mr Naivalurua said the arrests were also a reflection of good in­telligence work and gathering of information on illegal activities within the country.

“It simply indicates that the police are on top of some of these issues here.

“And then through the sharing of information, intelligence they have, they’re able to pinpoint who the people are and they take the appropriate action, as we have wit­nessed in the last day.

“Then the ability to work together as in joint operation, that’s another test for an organisation, that is only possible through sharing of infor­mation, intelligence, the ability to have joint operations.”