Dutch citizen among those arrested in massive French Polynesia drug bust

The police in French Polynesia have arrested a Dutch man and a German in connection with a major drug bust. According to prosecutors, 900 kilos of cocaine and 180 kilos of methamphetamine were found on board a sailboat, local media, including Polynésie 1, report. They describe it as a record seizure.

The sailboat was allegedly being used to traffic drugs from Mexico to Australia. The mayor of Nuku Hiva told Polynesie 1 that the seizure of the drugs began near the end of the afternoon on Monday, but that it took until Tuesday, 8 a.m. before all packages were loaded. According to him, this clearly shows how many drugs were on the ship.

The boat has been brought to the port of Nuku Hiva, which is one of the 118 islands of French Polynesia, located between Australia and the American continents.

French Polynesia has become a significant transit point for drug trafficking, with several major seizures in recent years. Authorities have identified a maritime route from Latin America to Australia, passing through Pacific islands like French Polynesia, as a major corridor for illicit drug shipments. For this reason, ships are often checked on this route.

This is not the first time that a Dutch citizen has been arrested for drug-related offenses in the area. A catamaran arriving in Nuku Hiva was found to be carrying between 400 and 600 kilograms of cocaine in an incident in 2017, according to reports at the time. The crew members, including two Dutchmen and a Pole, claimed they were unaware of the cargo. The drugs were believed to have been transported from Costa Rica and were likely destined for the Australian market.