Drug networks thrive because assets go untouched, DPP Deputy warns

Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions John Rabuku says Fiji urgently needs a stronger asset recovery system to cripple drug-related profits.

Speaking at the 27th Attorney-General’s Conference at the Sheraton Fiji Golf and Beach Resort in Denarau last Saturday, Mr Rabuku said Fiji’s laws were advanced on paper but lacked the operational strength needed to disrupt the illicit drug economy.

“We have had asset recovery laws since 1997. We have amended them, strengthened them, aligned them with international standards, yet the challenges remain the same: limited capacity, limited funding, limited enforcement,” he said.

Mr Rabuku said that while most Pacific jurisdictions, including Fiji, operated both conviction-based and non-conviction-based recovery systems, the real barrier was not legislation but investment and enforcement.

Fiji falling behind

He compared Fiji’s progress with Australia, which in 2019 set a national target of recovering $600 million in criminal assets by 2023, but exceeded that goal, collecting $1.2 billion by 2023.

“Australia decided to invest. Their system is not new, just an offshoot of the Federal Police, but it works because the government backed it,” he said.

“If we invest in a meaningful, effective asset confiscation system, the returns can be three to four times the cost.”

Mr Rabuku said dismantling drug networks in Fiji remained difficult because the networks themselves were not public-facing, but the individuals profiting from the trade were well known in communities.

“You see someone with a massive house and two four-wheel drives, but their income doesn’t match their wealth. These are individuals dealing in drugs over the years, yet their properties have not been confiscated.”

Call to use unexplained wealth laws

He urged members of the public to use existing laws, especially the unexplained wealth provisions introduced in 2012.

“If someone cannot explain the source of their wealth, that is grounds for investigation. The law allows citizens to make that complaint.”

Mr Rabuku called on the Attorney-General to allocate dedicated funding for a robust asset forfeiture system, saying criminal proceeds must be seized and reinvested into crime-fighting.

“The returns are proven. What we need now is the political will to act,” he said.

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