New Zealand busts Asian drug-money laundering gang

WELLINGTON - New Zealand police investigating Asian organised crime raided a money exchange company in Auckland Thursday, claiming it was a multimillion dollar operation to launder illegal drug proceeds.

Two people were arrested and police seized their assets, including a house valued at 2 million New Zealand dollars ($1.4 million) and two vehicles, the firm’s bank accounts, three firearms and 40,000 New Zealand dollars cash.

A police statement linked the raid with the seizure of methamphetamine, worth 5 million New Zealand dollars, and the arrest of six other men last week.

“Police believe the financial firm has assisted the drug ring to launder money by transferring large amounts of drug money through various accounts, and moving it internationally to disguise its origin,” said detective inspector Steve Wood of the Organised and Financial Crime Agency.

He said the Auckland-based criminals were linked to other criminal networks in China, Taiwan and South Korea.

Wood said the raid was part of Taskforce Acacia, a year-long investigation targeting Asian organised crime in New Zealand, which had seen more than 6 million New Zealand dollars worth of methamphetamine and the precursor drug ContacNT seized, along with 21 guns and 400,000 New Zealand dollars.

Sixteen people have been charged with drug-dealing offences.

The pair arrested Thursday, a 26-year-old company director and a finance manager, 27, were jointly charged with laundering 1.9 million New Zealand dollars over the past year.