Man arrested at Rarotonga airport with over a kilogram of cannabis
Cook Islands Police arrested a 36-year-old man at Rarotonga International Airport after Customs found more than a kilogram of cannabis in two packages in his luggage. He was remanded in custody after a court appearance on the Saturday, 22 November 2025.
🇳🇿 Rarotonga International Airport, Avarua, Rarotonga, Cook Islands · New Zealand
Cook Islands Police arrested a 36-year-old man at Rarotonga International
Airport on Friday 21 November 2025 and charged him with importing cannabis.[1]Customs officers found more than one kilogram of cannabis in two packages in his
possession when he arrived as a passenger on a flight, and referred the matter
to the police.[1]He arrived as a passenger on a flight on the Friday and
Customs referred the matter to the police, who arrested him.[1]
Police media advisor Trevor Pitt said the accused was still remanded in custody
after appearing in court on the Saturday.[1]The same police roundup reported
the theft of a rented motorcycle in Avarua and four weekend crashes, separate
incidents left out of this report.[1]
Photos and video
The accused, with his face pixelated, in a picture published with the arrest report. Photo: Police media via Cook Islands NewsPhoto details
The exact weight is not published; police said only "over one kilogram", so the figure uses 1 kg as the minimum stated.
No flight origin or airline is named beyond saying he arrived as a passenger on a flight.
The article gives the arrest only as "Friday"; 21 November 2025 is inferred from the Saturday court appearance and the 25 November publication date.
No plea, trial date or outcome was reported, and the accused was not named and was not shown in identifiable form.
The article's only picture is captioned with the headline and credited to police media; the text does not describe the scene it shows.
Only one account of this arrest was found; no second outlet or police statement could be opened.
The Cook Islands has no id in the tracker's country registry, so the draft uses the New Zealand country entry, as the existing Rarotonga reports do, and names the Cook Islands in the place.
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