An outstanding decision on a former customs officer accused of importing methamphetamine in 2020 has been delivered and the official was found guilty. 

The District Court Judge, Loau Donald Kerslake handed down the decision this week finding Pueleo Sefulua Peseta guilty of two counts of importing illegal drugs in December 2020. 

Pueleo had pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was a customs officer at the time when the Ministry of Customs and Revenue (M.C.R.) officials and police intercepted the parcel concealed in cereal boxes. 

Judge Kerslake at the conclusion of his decision said: "I find that the prosecution has proven beyond a reasonable doubt elements of the charge that; it was the accused who imported into Samoa a prohibited good specified in schedule 1 which was the narcotic methamphetamine". 

The defendant is on bail pending his sentence in December. 

He is accused of importing meth weighing 454.8 grams originating from the U.S. and concealed in a box of cereals stored in a container. 

The matter proceeded to trial in November 2021 after Pueleo pleaded not guilty to the charges. 

The then prosecutor for the case was lawyer Fuifui Ioane called 22 witnesses in the trial. The defence counsel is Lucy Sio Ofoia and her client Pueleo also gave evidence during the hearing.

During his testimony the defendant claimed he received a call from the Transam shipping agent to pay the required fees to release a package addressed to him. He denied any knowledge of the sender of the package who was identified as Siaosi Mataio. 

He told the Court he did not take any notice of the sender’s name and was expecting a car engine from New Zealand and was under the impression that the package was the car part he needed.  

The Ministry of Customs and Revenue agents intercepted two parcels from the United States in December 2020 containing methamphetamine and marijuana with an estimated street value of $500,000.