HUGE HEROIN HAUL IN FIJI

This weekend's could be Australia's biggest ever drugs seizure A
multinational police operation seized a "staggering" amount of heroin in
Suva, the capital of Fiji, on Saturday.

Initial estimates suggested that more than 300 kgs (660 lbs) of heroin was
seized in the operation involving Australia, New Zealand, the United States
and Canada as well as local police.

"In a commodity that is measured in fractions of a gram that is a truly
staggering amount of illicit drugs", Australian Justice Minister Amanda
Vanstone said.

Conservative estimates put the value of the haul at over $100m (US$145m)

Record haul

The exact size of the stockpile has yet to be determined, but the
Australian Justice Ministry said it "could be as large as Australia's
largest-ever seizure of 390 kgs."

Two people have been arrested so far.

On Saturday, police raided a Chinese restaurant and several homes in a
wealthy suburb of Suva as part of an operation that began three months ago.

Fiji appears to have been a transit point on a route that brought drugs
from Hong Kong and southern China to Australia and North America.