Customs intercepts $7.5m meth haul at Auckland Airport

The illegal contents of the unaccompanied bag. Photo / Customs

By RNZ

Customs officers at Auckland International Airport have stopped about 25kg of methamphetamine from hitting the streets.

The illicit drug was in an unaccompanied backpack which arrived on a flight from San Francisco, United States on June 14.

The bag was referred to Customs by border partners after inconsistencies in X-ray imaging.

Customs officers found a vacuum-sealed package inside, which tested positive for methamphetamine.

New Zealand Customs Service estimate the methamphetamine had a street value of about $7.5 million.

Chief customs officer Tracy Henderson said the package could have caused about $26 million in potential harm and cost to New Zealand.

“Customs continues to work closely with our border agency colleagues to disrupt the organised criminal groups behind these drug importations,” she said.

Henderson said it has been a busy year for the Auckland Airport team, and many of the successes were the result of the trust and respect amongst partner and border agencies.

– RNZ