A prominent Fiji businessman who holds a New Zealand passport and a high chief are in custody in Suva today, accused of plotting to assassinate President Ratu Josefa Iloilo, according to Fiji media.
The area around the central police station in Suva has been cordoned off in an
operation which appears to involve both police and army officers, according to reports on agency AFP.
There was no immediate confirmation of the arrests, but Police Commissioner Esala Teleni was expected to hold a press conference later today.
The two men, who were detained yesterday, were identified by the Fijilive website as businessman Ballu Khan and former Senator Ratu Inoke Takiveikata.
A lawyer allowed to visit one of the men spoke to waiting reporters from the Fiji Times newspaper, a news website and Fiji TV.
The lawyer, who requested anonymity, was taken to the police station last evening and said she was only allowed to see Inoke.
When she left, interim Prime Minister Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama, who led a military coup which toppled prime minister Laisenia Qarase last December, arrived and spent 30 minutes in the police station, waiting reporters said.
Fiji TV said Khan holds a New Zealand passport and an official from the New Zealand High Commission in Suva also arrived at the police station, an AFP report said.
