AUCKLAND, New Zealand — Two Tongan men accused of participating in a large-scale methamphetamine supply and money-laundering operation uncovered through an international police sting have been publicly named.
Fine Steve Lapuaho and Siaki Lavaki had been granted interim name suppression but abandoned their applications for continued suppression when they appeared in the Auckland District Court.
The men faced charges of supplying methamphetamine, money laundering and participating in an organised criminal group. The allegations had yet to be proven in court at the time.
Lapuaho and Lavaki were among those arrested during Operation Trojan Shield, a global investigation targeting organised criminal networks in 16 countries.
The operation resulted in more than 800 arrests worldwide after law-enforcement agencies secretly monitored communications exchanged through ANOM, an encrypted platform developed and operated by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Users allegedly believed the devices provided secure and impenetrable communications. However, the FBI was able to monitor their messages for 18 months and share intelligence with law-enforcement agencies in other countries.
New Zealand Police began working with the FBI on the operation in January 2020. Investigators obtained thousands of messages allegedly discussing drug trafficking, money laundering and other criminal activity.
More than 300 New Zealand police officers later executed 37 search warrants across Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Central and Wellington districts.
Police arrested 35 people and laid more than 900 charges during the coordinated enforcement operation.
According to New Zealand Police, authorities seized more than nine kilograms of methamphetamine, large quantities of cannabis, four firearms, 14 vehicles and motorbikes, and an estimated $1 million in cash.
The total value of assets seized was reported at $3.7 million.
The New Zealand investigations targeted the alleged importation and distribution of methamphetamine and other drugs, as well as money-laundering networks linked to organised criminal groups.
The international operation involved New Zealand Police, the FBI, the Australian Federal Police, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration and Europol.
Detective Superintendent Greg Williams, then director of the New Zealand Police National Organised Crime Group, said transnational criminal organisations caused extensive social, health and financial harm, particularly among vulnerable individuals and families.
Police described Operation Trojan Shield as one of the world’s most sophisticated law-enforcement operations against organised crime.
