CHRISTCHURCH: A multimillion-dollar shipment of cocaine – smuggled to New Zealand inside a diamante-encrusted horse sculpture – may have been destined in part for Christchurch, where the rebuild after the devastating 2011 earthquake appears to be fuelling a demand for hard drugs.
The record 35 kilogram seizure, with an estimated $NZ14 million ($13.5 million) street value, was air freighted from Mexico to Auckland International Airport where it was discovered by authorities in May.
Police and Customs revealed the haul of high-grade cocaine after a six-week covert investigation, which used various surveillance techniques, came to a head on Friday.
On Monday, three men – two from Mexico and another from the US – will appear in courts in Auckland and Christchurch charged with importing and possessing the class A drug.
It is understood police believe at least some of the cocaine was bound for Christchurch, where they searched two homes in a gated apartment block in Linwood, on Saturday.
Experts say the availability of hard drugs like ecstasy and methamphetamine in the city appears to be on the rise, bucking trends in other parts of the country.
Massey University drug researcher Dr Chris Wilkins said the rebuild had attracted a lot of young men from all over the world who had a taste for drugs and were likely fuelling demand.
As a result, some local Christchurch gangs had been absorbed by national groups, like the Head Hunters, Rebels and Bandidos, to allow the trafficking of drugs all over New Zealand.
Wilkins said he was surprised at the scale of the recent cocaine seizure. The use of the drug in New Zealand remained rare, confined to a niche market, and did not feature strongly in his research.
The drug may have been destined for another country like Australia, where demand was high in cities like Sydney and Melbourne, he said.
On Sunday, national organised crime manager Detective Superintendent Virginia Le Bas said police were still working to establish the cocaine’s final destination.
Some people in Christchurch were using the drug, she said, acknowledging that the rebuild had created a change in demand for some illicit substances.
Le Bas previously said only a fraction of the population reported using cocaine, which was generally used by wealthy party-goers.
A source said the drug didn’t come to police attention like methamphetamine, because the people using it rarely needed to commit crime to feed their addiction.
The horse sculpture, which weighed 365 kilograms, was destined for an address in Te Atatu, Auckland. The cocaine, which sells for about $NZ400 a gram on the street, was packaged in 1kg bricks.
A 44-year-old Mexican and a 56-year-old American were arrested on Friday at Auckland International Airport as they attempted to fly to Hawaii.
A 29-year-old Mexican was arrested in Christchurch.
It is not the first time in recent years a large shipment of cocaine has been linked to Christchurch.
In 2014, 2.5kg of the drug was found at Auckland International Airport inside two suitcases, which were brought into the country by a passenger on a flight from South America.
Police said they’d uncovered a cocaine supply route between Auckland and Christchurch and arrested several Brazilian men as part of an operation dubbed Grenoble.
According to police figures, about 42 kilograms of cocaine had been seized since 2010, excluding the recent record haul.
