In Fiji court, 32 kg of cocaine replaced with flour — ABC News Australia

At the High Court in Suva, Fiji, 32 kilograms of cocaine stored as evidence in a lengthy drug trafficking trial were replaced with flour. Police are investigating the disappearance of the drugs, whose total value, according to ABC News Australia, exceeds $10 million.

39 kilograms of cocaine unaccounted for

The cocaine was evidence in the case of Fijian-Canadian citizen Joshua Aziz Rahman. Earlier, local media outlet Fiji Village reported the disappearance of 7 kilograms of cocaine in the same trial. The outlet later said that the remaining drugs had been replaced with flour.

Thus, the whereabouts of 39 kilograms of cocaine have not yet been established. According to ABC News Australia, depending on the purity of the drug, its street value could reach $15 million.

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.

Investigation into tampering with evidence

Fiji Police said forensic tests of the drugs came back negative. The agency reported that all evidence had been tampered with, and the investigation is focused on people responsible for managing evidence at the High Court registry.

Police also said that a person of interest who is believed to be involved in the incident is abroad and is expected to be questioned. At the same time, it is unclear who was directly responsible for storing the missing cocaine. Fiji's Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions stated that the storage and security of the drugs fall under police jurisdiction.

The incident occurred after Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka dissolved the national drug enforcement bureau last year. This was preceded by the prosecution of 27 law enforcement officers in drug-related cases over the previous three years.