Drugs purchases lead to Tahiti meth bust

5:00 pm on 22 January 2019

Suspiciously large purchases of medicines led to the discovery of French Polynesia's first site to produce methamphetamine, the public prosecutor in says

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Photo: RNZ/ Nick Monro

At the weekend, a house was raided on Tahiti's peninsula after months of investigations, and a couple in their 30s was taken into custody.

The prosecutor said the two had bought the unnamed drugs in the area's pharmacies to produce methamphetamine for themselves and for sale.

They risk being jailed for 20 years.

Investigations are continuing to determine the extent of the network.

In the past all methamphetamine seized in Tahiti had been smuggled in from the United States.

There have been a raft of high-profile cases in recent years.

Figures show last year 130 people were charged with methamphetamine-related offences and about 25kg of the drug were seized.

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