Page 10 - IB AUG 2018

Political Brief - FIJI

with IB Online (www.islandsbusiness.com)

Fiji man in $13m drugs smuggling bust

A Fijian man who allegedly tried to smuggle 50kg of cocaine
hidden in a shipment of bottled water has been charged with
importing commercial quantities of the drug.
John Kaurasi, 29, allegedly prepared the $17.5million
(US$12.8 million) shipment for export from Fiji before
travelling to Australia to collect it.
The package arrived on 10 August and was referred to
the Australian Federal Police. Officers from the Australian
Border Force allegedly discovered the cocaine at an inspec-
tion facility in Sydney.
Kaurasi was arrested on 17 August, following a search
on a Hurstville property. The Australian Federal Police
announced they had arrested and charged the Fijian man
- whose shipment was discovered by x-rays used by the
Australian Border Force. Part of the USD$12.8m cocaine bust involving a Fiji man.
He was later charged with importing a commercial quan- Photo: Australian Border Force
tity of border-controlled drugs. Kaurasi did not apply for
bail at Parramatta Court, meaning he will stay behind bars try and beat our border processes.’
until he faces court again. “Using a mix of intelligence and our recently upgraded
AFP investigators are still working to identify the drug’s x-ray technology, we are capable of detecting drugs before
intended recipients. The ABF credited recently upgraded x- they can make it into the Australian community.
ray technology for helping its officers discover the shipment. “We hope it sends a message that, if you’re thinking of
Regional commander Danielle Yannopoulos said: ‘Unfor- importing illicit drugs to Australia, it’s simply not worth the
tunately, criminals use all sorts of concealment methods to risk. We will catch you eventually,” he said.

October trial for Rabuka in Fiji. It has issued statements denying the allegations against
Trial dates for Fiji’s opposition SODELPA leader, Sitiveni Rabuka its founder.
has been confirmed for 15 to 19 October in the Suva Magistrates
Court. Rabuka is facing charges of providing false declaration Fiji Sugar ordered to pay
of his assets to the Supervisor of Elections. His lawyer, Filimoni THE Suva High Court has ordered the Fiji Sugar Corporation to
Vosarogo informed the court that as they are engaging the ser- pay $126,656.92 to an employee who was injured at work. FSC
vices of a Queen’s Counsel, Ian Lloyd to hear the substantive had admitted the liability, according to the court judgement that
matter and that he would be available for the October dates. was handed down on 4 July by Justice Deepthi Amaratunga.
Resident Magistrate Joji Boseiwaqa will preside over the case. Mithun Raj was 33 years old when he was injured on 2nd April
Pre-trial conference will be held on 14 September. Its alleged 2014. He was a carpenter and injured his hand by a rotating
Rabuka provided false declaration of assets and liabilities by blade of the saw he was working with. Raj lost two fingers on
failing to provide information pertaining to the tax liability with his left hand.
the Fiji Revenue and Customs Services which amounted to over
$316,000 (US$148,000). He is also alleged to have failed to Criminalise people trafficking
declare Investment and interest income from Raghwan Con- FIJI has been told to amend its Crimes Decree to criminalise all
structions Limited in the amount of $200,000 (US$100,000) forms of trafficking in persons. That’s one of the key recommen-
and $16,000 (US$7,525) respectively and also a liability in the dations presented in the 2018 Report on Trafficking in Persons
amount of $120,000(US$56,000). that has been released by the US State Department. Criminalising
trafficking in persons will include forced labour, says the recom-
Grace Road officials released mendation. The US Government also wants Fiji to designate a
SIx South Korean nationals, including the son of the founder of government agency responsible for coordinating victim services
Grace Road Group, have been released under orders by the High and make efforts to allow identified trafficking victims to work
Court in Lautoka. The six were initially detained after Police raids and earn income while assisting with investigations.
were conducted with the help of Korean Police officers who flew
into the country. Director Immigration Nemani Vuniwaqa had Island in $2m coke haul
confirmed that after late night raids, the Korean nationals, who COCAINE seized on a remote Fiji island has been valued at
are Grace Road officials, were taken into custody. Employees of close to $3million. A joint naval operation between Fiji and
Grace Roads also assisted in turning in the three – one in Suva New Zealand saw the seizure of 52 kilogrammes of cocaine
and two in Nadi. More than 20 Korean Police officers are in the in two separate raids. Lieutenant Benjamin Flight, Command-
country. One of those that were initially detained is the son of ing Officer of HMNZS Taupo, said 12kg was seized from an
Reverend Shin Ok Joo, the founder of Grace Road, who was ar- unidentified island in the Lau Group last week after a tip off
rested in Korea last month. She allegedly convinced 400 followers from the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service. Earlier in the
to move to Fiji because a “great famine” was imminent on the month, 40kg of cocaine – with a street value of $USD27,000
Korean Peninsula. Grace Road operates a range of businesses per kg - was seized from the same island.

10 Islands Business, August 2018