Nearly 40kg of cocaine missing from Fiji court as remaining exhibits turn into flour

Nearly 40 kilograms (88 pounds) of cocaine stored as evidence in a major drug trial have been stolen from a courthouse in Fiji, with most of the missing drugs allegedly replaced with flour, according to local media reports.

The cocaine, valued at about 30 million Fijian dollars ($13.3 million), was seized in 2019 in a case involving Fiji-Canadian national Joshua Rahman, who was convicted of unlawful possession, according to official records.

The seized drugs were kept at the Suva High Court while appeals in the case were being heard. However, during an inspection on September 15, authorities discovered that seven of the 39 cocaine bars were missing.

A subsequent investigation found that none of the original cocaine remained, with the remaining exhibits testing negative for cocaine.

“Forensic tests conducted on the remaining drug exhibits have all returned negative,” police said in a statement on Tuesday.

Police said the exhibits had been tampered with and that the investigation was focusing on individuals responsible for managing the evidence at the High Court Registry.

Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu said the cocaine was placed in the High Court vault in March 2021, but investigators had yet to establish when it was stolen. The exhibits had previously been confirmed as cocaine during testing in 2019.

Six people working within the judiciary who had access to the vault have been identified as persons of interest, Tudravu said. One of them is currently outside the country.

Authorities have also begun checking other exhibits stored at the court, including seized cash, amid concerns over the security of evidence held within the judicial system.

The discovery has triggered public and political outrage, with questions being raised about how the drugs could have been removed and replaced without detection.

Opposition politician Jone Usamate described the incident as a serious failure of responsibility and questioned whether other exhibits held by the court could also have been tampered with.

Justice Minister Siromi Turaga expressed disappointment and shock over the incident, saying authorities were working to strengthen security and review procedures at the High Court.

The case comes as Fiji faces growing concerns over drug trafficking and organised crime. The Pacific island nation has increasingly been used as a transit point for narcotics trafficked from the Americas to markets in Australia, New Zealand and parts of Asia.

Turaga said the disappearance of the cocaine was particularly concerning given the country’s ongoing efforts to combat transnational crime.

“This goes to show the magnitude of the problem we are facing,” he said, adding that no one would be exempt from the investigation and that anyone found responsible would be held accountable.

The latest incident is not the first disappearance of seized cocaine from Fiji’s judicial system. In March, police discovered that another 12 kilograms of cocaine linked to a separate criminal case had also gone missing.

Journalists questioned Commissioner Tudravu about why security measures had not been strengthened following the earlier discovery and whether the latest theft could have been prevented.

Tudravu said authorities were concerned about the situation and were working to complete the investigation as quickly as possible.