SUVA — Fiji’s Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu confirmed on Wednesday that investigators have identified six persons of interest in the disappearance of about 40kg of cocaine from the Suva High Court exhibit vault, and have taken statements from 27 people as they try to establish who had direct access to the drugs, RNZ reports.
One of the six is overseas and will be questioned, Tudravu said, according to RNZ. No charges have been reported, and police have not said publicly whether any of the six are court officers, police officers or people with no official connection to the building.
Key facts
- Six persons of interest identified; 27 statements recorded, Tudravu said, per RNZ.
- One person of interest is overseas and will be questioned, RNZ reports.
- 39 cocaine bars, about 40kg, with a street value of roughly US$14 million, are missing, according to RNZ.
- The drugs were seized in 2019 in connection with the Johua Rahman case, RNZ reports.
- Police say the exhibits tested positive for cocaine in February and July 2019 and were moved to the Suva High Court vault in March 2021.
- Police have taken over security at Government Buildings, where the High Court sits, RNZ reports.
- A digital forensic team is extracting CCTV footage and biometric access records, according to RNZ.
- No charges have been reported and none of the six has been named.
The chain of custody, as police describe it
The timeline Tudravu set out to reporters, as reported by RNZ, is the most detailed public account so far of where the drugs were and when. The 39 bars were seized in 2019. They were held in police custody and tested positive for cocaine twice that year — in February and again in July. In March 2021 they were transferred to the exhibit vault at the Suva High Court, inside Government Buildings in central Suva.
Measured from that July 2019 test to the point at which the loss came to light, those dates describe a gap of roughly four and a half years. That figure is this publication’s own arithmetic on the dates police gave; police did not characterise the interval themselves, and RNZ does not report them doing so. It matters because police have not publicly said when the bars were last physically sighted, weighed or re-tested inside the court vault. Until that date is on the record, the window in which the substitution could have occurred remains open across years rather than weeks.
The disappearance first became public when it emerged that 40kg of cocaine went missing from the Suva High Court evidence room, with bars left behind in the vault found to contain flour rather than narcotics. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions then publicly responded, and the ODPP defended how drug exhibits are handled, maintaining that the rules governing exhibits were sound.
How police are investigating
A dedicated team has been established at Criminal Investigation Department headquarters, drawing senior investigators from the Major Crime Unit, the digital forensic unit, and the anti-money laundering and proceeds of crime division, RNZ reports. The presence of the proceeds-of-crime unit on that list is notable: on the face of the units named, investigators are not only asking who removed the bars but where 40kg of cocaine, or the money generated by selling it, subsequently went.
Police have also taken over security at Government Buildings, according to RNZ, and the digital forensic team is extracting CCTV footage and biometric records — the access logs that would show which individuals entered the vault area and at what times. Tudravu said the investigation was focused on determining who had direct access to the exhibits.
Two kinds of record are therefore central. Biometric and CCTV logs can place people at the vault; the court’s own exhibit register and movement slips would show who signed the bars in and out. RNZ’s report does not say whether that paper trail is intact, and police have not publicly described it.
What “person of interest” means here
A person of interest is not an accused person. The label signals only that investigators want to speak to someone, or to examine their movements and access, more closely. It carries no charge, no court process and no finding of wrongdoing, and it can be withdrawn without any public explanation. None of the six has been identified publicly, and on RNZ’s account Tudravu did not say whether they are court staff, police officers, contractors or outsiders. That distinction will shape how far the case reaches into the institutions holding the evidence.
What the government is saying
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka urged Fijians to keep faith in the courts while making clear the government regarded the theft as something to be rooted out from within. Speaking to local reporters at Government Buildings in Suva, he said authorities were pursuing rogue elements within the judiciary: “We are going to find them and they are going to face the consequences of their actions.”
Tudravu said he understood the public’s sense of urgency and that police were treating the case with utmost urgency, RNZ reports.
What is still unknown
Several questions remain unanswered on the public record, and they are the ones that would move the story from a count of statements to an account of how the drugs left the building:
- When were the 39 bars last verified inside the High Court vault, and by whom?
- Who holds the keys and biometric credentials for the exhibit room, and how many people are on that list?
- Did the flour substitution occur before or after the March 2021 transfer from police custody?
- Is the court’s exhibit register complete for the period since March 2021?
- Do the missing exhibits affect any live prosecution or appeal?
- Has anyone been suspended or stood aside while the investigation runs?
Neither police nor the government has addressed those points publicly in the reporting available, and this publication has not obtained answers to them. We will update this report if police, the judiciary or the ODPP address any of them on the record.
Sources and method
Facts in this report are drawn from RNZ Pacific’s 1 October 2026 story on the case, which quotes Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu and Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, together with our earlier reports on the discovery of the loss and the ODPP’s response, both linked above. Every factual claim is attributed in the text to the outlet that reported it. The only figure not taken from a source is the roughly four-and-a-half-year interval, which is our own arithmetic on the dates police gave and is flagged as such where it appears. Jobs for Fiji News has not independently confirmed RNZ’s account, and the six persons of interest have not been charged.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many people have Fiji police interviewed over the missing court cocaine?
Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu said investigators had recorded statements from 27 individuals, RNZ reports. He said six persons of interest have been identified, and that one of them is overseas and will be questioned.
How much cocaine is missing from the Suva High Court, and what was it worth?
RNZ reports that 39 cocaine bars weighing about 40kg, with a street value of roughly US$14 million, are missing from the Suva High Court exhibit vault. RNZ reports the drugs were seized in 2019 in connection with the Johua Rahman case.
When was the cocaine moved into the High Court vault?
According to RNZ, Tudravu said the drugs were held in police custody after the 2019 seizure, tested positive for cocaine in February and July 2019, and were transferred to the Suva High Court vault in March 2021. Measuring from the July 2019 test to the reported discovery of the loss, that is a gap of roughly four and a half years — an arithmetic calculation by this publication from the dates police gave, not a figure police themselves stated.
Does being named a person of interest mean someone has been charged?
No. A person of interest is someone investigators want to speak to or examine more closely; it carries no charge and no finding of wrongdoing. No charges have been reported in this case, none of the six has been publicly identified, and Tudravu has not said publicly whether any of them are court staff, police officers or outsiders, based on RNZ’s reporting.
What is the government saying about the case?
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka urged Fijians to trust the judiciary and said authorities were pursuing rogue elements within it, telling reporters at Government Buildings in Suva: "We are going to find them and they are going to face the consequences of their actions." Tudravu said police were treating the investigation with utmost urgency.
Who is investigating, and what evidence are they looking at?
RNZ reports a dedicated team has been set up at Criminal Investigation Department headquarters, drawing on the Major Crime Unit, the digital forensic unit and the anti-money laundering and proceeds of crime division. Police have taken over security at Government Buildings, and the digital forensic team is extracting CCTV footage and biometric access records.
