A Ministry of Customs and Revenue (M.C.R.) officer has been charged after Police seized methamphetamine estimated to have a street value of $500,000 on Tuesday. 

The seizure netted an estimated 900 grams of methamphetamine, Police said. 

The latest bust follows an earlier interception of marijuana and 500 grams of methamphetamine late last year from the same shipment. The estimated value of the December seizure was also $500,000. 

The Ministry’s Commissioner, Matafeo Avalisa Viali-Fautuaalii, confirmed a member of her staff had been arrested and charged and expressed her disappointment.

“What a waste of all the hard work of our Border Team [it] is tarnished by [the alleged] actions of one of our staff,” Matafeo told the Samoa Observer on Wednesday.

The Samoa Observer understands that the customs officer has been charged for his alleged role in Tuesday's attempted smuggling - but not for the December bust. 

In a further public statement issued on the interception of the drug shipment, Matafeo said allegations of involvement in drug smuggling will not be tolerated inside the Ministry. 

“Any law enforcement officer who is found to have affiliations with this sort of criminal activity will be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” she said.

The shipment was addressed to the customs officer who had been charged, Police said.

Combined the amount of methamphetamine confiscated across both seizures amounts to a street value of $1 million and weight of 1.4 kilograms according to M.C.R. figures.

The Ministry of Police charged the Customs Officer, Pueleo Sefululua Peseta, under the Customs Act 2014, for the importation of prohibited goods.

The offence carries a penalty of up to six years in jail or a fine up to $300,000.

“This consignment came from that same shipment which brought in the [drug shipments we discovered and seized on [23] December,” Matafeo said in an email to the Samoa Observer. 

A press release later issued by the Ministry of Customs and Revenue said that the interception was a record interception of the drug commonly known as 'ice'.

"Recently in December 2020, M.C.R and the Joint K9 Unit with MPP intercepted and seized more than 500 grams of methamphetamine," the statement read.

"When Customs intercepted more than 1,400 grams of methamphetamine [...] at the border [...] this is recorded as the largest methamphetamine bust in Samoan history.

“Any law enforcement officer who is found to have affiliations with this sort of criminal activity will be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Police are continuing to investigate possible connections between the two cases.

The discovery of both cases of attempted smuggling was the result of a joint operation between the M.C.R. and the Police. 

“The bust yesterday (Tuesday) of more than 900 grams of ice was split into two vacuum-packed packages and concealed inside two boxes of cereal," an M.C.R. statement said.

“The seizure resulted in the referral of a Customs officer to Police [Tuesday] for his suspected involvement in this shipment and he has now been charged and full investigation is ongoing by the Police.”

The package originated from the United States of America, the M.C.R. said. 

While initial tests determined the substance to be methamphetamine further testing has been referred to the Scientific Research Office of Samoa.

The charged customs officer is awaiting a court date,