Drug ring probe held

By Angela Paul
INVESTIGATIONS into the Budibudi drug case last month is getting nowhere as communication is a major problem between the suspects and migration officers, police say.
Migration officers are continuing investigations on the seven men (six of Asian origin and a European) who are still in custody at the Alotau police station.
Acting provincial police commander George Bayagau said it was “very difficult to find out a lot of information that might be helpful to press charges” in this case because language was a barrier.
“The case is still under investigation, these men do not speak English and every time we need a translator to do the translation, which is not easy,” Bayagau said.
He said earlier that the seven were charged with trespassing and were detained, awaiting orders from Customs and Immigration officers.
“The Customs and Immigration will give us the right charges to press,” Bayagau said.
He said the suspects were identified and confirmed by a key witness but the police needed more proof from a couple of witnesses from Budibudi.
Budibudi is about 370km from Alotau and travelling there is costly and time consuming.
Bayagau said funding for travel to that part of the province on a mission by the law and order organisation was a problem.
“Travelling by boat takes weeks and it is hard to bring the witnesses in unless we use a helicopter,” he said.
He said the men were currently charged under migration laws so police and Customs could not touch on any other offence yet.
The seven men were suspected to be part of an international drug syndicate after they were found on Budibudi early this month.
Bayagau said a vessel allegedly used by the men was found close by off Tuam Island in Morobe.
The vessel is still aground near Tuam Island in Morobe. The police tried to tow the vessel in to Alotau this month but were unsuccessful.
This is despite a tug being sent to tow the vessel in with the help of the National Maritime Safety Authority (NMSA).
“NMSA assisted for confirmation to make sure that nothing on the boat is damaged for further investigation,” Bayagau said.
Budibudi Islanders found about 50 5-6kg packs of cocaine hidden in the sand.
While the final destination of the drug is not clear, of the countries closest to Papua New Guinea, Australia, is the biggest market for cocaine.
Reports say that cocaine in this part of the world comes from South America where it can be bought in its pure form for US$1000 (K3200)- US$2000 (K6583) a kilo.
The cocaine is then smuggled across the Pacific Ocean to Bali where it is sold for between US$20,000 (K65,000) and US$90,000 (K296,000) a kilo.
When that cocaine hits Australia, the price can be as high as A$300,000 (K735,000) a kilo or A$309 (K709) a gram according to the Global Drug Survey 2018.
The survey found that the only country to be more expensive than Australia was New Zealand, where users on average pay NZ$336 (K754) per gram.
The high prices of the drug in Australia and New Zealand are attributed to those countries’ tough border security.