A woman who was arrested and charged earlier this year after Police seized 15 kilograms of methamphetamine has been reportedly released.
‘Ana Seini Kolokihakaufisi, 37, along with her brother Tevita Nonu Kolokihakaufisi, 39, were arrested at their home after Police seized 5.657kg of meth at their family residence at Kolofo’ou.
A further 9.927kg was confiscated at Tēvita’s office at the National Reserve Bank of Tonga. The street value of the seized illicit drugs was estimated at $15 million Pa’anga (US$6.3 m).
A report by Kakalu ‘O Tonga newspaper this week alleged that Ana Seini’s lawyer, Mr David Corbett, had recently announced her release.
The reasons for the release were still unclear. However, it was reported at the time of her arrest that the defence counsels for the siblings had sought bail for ‘Ana based on a letter from a doctor that was issued in 2015, indicating her previous mental health condition.
The Magistrate refused the bail and demanded a more recent medical evaluation for the Court to consider.
Drug use crisis
The release comes amid the kingdom’s struggling to tackle its drug use crisis.
A new development in that crisis was the attempt by notorious motorcycle gangs, the Comancheros, to establish a chapter in Tonga.
The Comanchero has headquarters in New Zealand and Australia.
The Tongan police arrested two Comanchero suspects recently following the previous arrest of two of the gang’s alleged senior figures last month.
The two men arrested over the weekend were believed to be the sergeant-at-arms and the treasurer of the gang’s branch in Tonga. Police said the arrest was a major blow to the group’s operation in the country.
Meanwhile, in New Zealand, Police said nearly every member of the Comanchero Motorcycle Gang now faces criminal charges amid a three-year investigation.
New details about the investigation were released by police yesterday and also revealed the gang was raising money so its members could undergo “military-styled training” by a trainer brought into the country.
It has been revealed that the New Zealand Comanchero established a “commission” which ordered members to raise funds to buy a gang pad, two businesses, and guns.
“As an example: It is alleged there would be a $5000 commission on every kilogram sold by their members,” the New Zealand Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said.
The Tongan police believe that the arrest they made over the weekend could help thwart the Comanchero’s attempts to expand their reach in the kingdom.
“What the intelligence is telling us now is that the development of the Comancheros is halted, and we’d like to think that will be the end of the Tongan chapter of the Comancheros motorcycle gang,” Tonga’s police commissioner, Shane McLennan, was reported by the ABC news as saying.
“Just like any club or organisation, gangs have a hierarchy and a structure. The treasurer has a financial role but the sergeant-at-arms is a key member of a gang for us to be able to arrest.
