A former high-ranking New Zealand police officer has been sentenced to one year in prison in the Cook Islands.
Mark Franklin appeared in the High Court in Rarotonga on Friday morning after admitting his role in the island's largest-ever drugs bust last week.
Franklin was arrested in Rarotonga in 2011 over allegations he was operating as a local dealer selling cannabis in a bar.
The sentence was reduced by nine months after the judge took into account Franklin's poor health and good character.
The former Northland detective-inspector was arrested with 12 other people, including the son of a former deputy prime minister, Giovanni Marsters, as part of Operation Eagle.
It was the island's largest ever drugs investigation, involving police from both the Cook Islands and New Zealand.
