Tahitian cruise ship passenger arrested in Raiatea (French Polynesia) with 21+ kg of drugs worth US$50 million

   March 24, 2022 ,   Accidents

The French Polynesian border police seized ~US$50 million worth of methamphetamine drugs onboard a HAL-Holland America cruise ship arriving from the USA.

A 27-year-old Tahitian passenger was arrested after the discovery of 21 kilograms (46+ pounds) of the drug in his luggage.

The local authorities said the man had wanted to offload a suitcase when the MS Zuiderdam ship was in Port Uturoa (Raiatea Island (French Polynesia) on Thursday, March 17.

4+ kilograms of the drug were found in the suitcase.

A subsequent search of his cabin turned up a further 15+ kg of methamphetamine in other luggage.

The man, who has been transferred to Papeete (Tahiti Island, French Polynesia) for further questioning, risks a jail term of up to 10 years.

According to investigators, the drugs were loaded by the mule in the United States.

For more MS Zuiderdam incidents and accidents see the ship's CruiseMinus page.