What you need to know about cocaine. Video / NZ Herald
Two Canadians have pleaded guilty to smuggling $22.5 million of cocaine on a cruise ship that entered New Zealand.
Melina Roberce, 23, and Andre Tamine, 64, were part of a trio found with four suitcases containing 95kg of cocaine after the Sea Princess was stopped in Sydney on August 28,2016, during a round-the-world cruise.
The trio used the 51-day cruise from the UK through Latin America and New Zealand before arriving in Australia to transport more than $22.5 million worth of cocaine.
Australian Border Force had identified the trio as "high-risk travellers" on the vessel, which was under increased scrutiny because of the large number of ports it had stopped at. They concluded the trio were part of a "very well organised syndicate".
Former adult actress Isabelle Lagace, who was part of the trio, claimed she was forced to transport the drugs to clear a $21,000 debt, calling it an "error in judgment" that would haunt her for the rest of her life.
"It pains me to know that my defining years of womanhood will be spent in prison halfway around the world," she said.
"I feel remorse and anger at myself about being involved with people who are part of a dirty, filthy drug trade."
Melina Roberge, 23, and Isabelle Lagace, 28, admitted to smuggling cocaine worth $22 million across the globe, including New Zealand, and into Sydney. Photo / Instagram
Tamine and Roberce were expected to stand trial this month before they pleaded guilty to a charge of jointly commissioning the importation of a commercial quantity of border-controlled drug, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Lagace was sentenced to four and a half years in prison on November 3 for her part in the drug-smuggling attempt.
According to the Daily Mail, Roberce's father became worried when his daughter told him she was embarking on a two-month, round-the-world cruise. He warned her not to go on the trip adding: "Who is paying $22,000 for your holiday?"
But the college drop-out went ahead on the cruise, which also took her into New Zealand.
Cocaine seized on a cruise ship by Australian Border Force. Photo / Australian Border Force
Police on three continents are looking into the background of who else may have been involved in the smuggling, which amounted to the biggest haul of drugs from a passenger ship or plane.
United States border control agencies in Canada and colleagues in New Zealand had identified the three as high-risk travellers and suspected them of being part of an international drug trafficking cartel.
Australian police have made it clear that the alleged smuggling was part of an "international crime syndicate" and that the drugs were meant to flood the illicit trade in Sydney and surrounding areas.
Assistant commissioner AFP Shane Connelly said: "These cartels should be advised that Australian Border Services are aware of all the methods they could use to bring drugs into our country and we are working with several international agencies to stop."
