Customs intelligence report, obtained exclusively by the Herald, reveals ‘insider threats’ grow as organised crime gangs expand in New Zealand. Video / Ben Dickens / Michael Morrah
Customs intelligence obtained exclusively by the Herald reveals New Zealand’s maritime borders are being “repeatedly exploited” by drug traffickers, local gangs are pushing into the Pacific and Europe, and that efforts to corrupt insiders at our ports and airports have intensified.
The manager of intelligence for the New Zealand CustomsService, Bruce Berry, told the Herald organised crime groups are expanding rapidly and the risks for the country are immense.
“I don’t think our society is prepared for the likely effects of what’s coming. Drugs are just going to become more prevalent, the social harms, the infiltration of people and systems through corruption is just going to get worse.”
A customs strategic border threat assessment report, obtained by the Herald under the Official Information Act, details a litany of new and emerging risks.
The report said organised crime groups are using sophisticated encryption devices and tracking equipment to monitor drug shipments and are adopting new technology “often faster than law enforcement agencies”. The report also said cyber-attacks on systems controlled by customs “will occur”.
It comes as efforts by drug gangs to recruit “clean skins” intensify. Clean skins are people without criminal convictions or gang associations who have systems knowledge or access to restricted areas.
In 2019 a police constable was caught selling intelligence to gangs. A year later, a shipping container with drugs suspected to be hidden inside was driven out the gates at the Ports of Auckland with the help of a port supervisor.
More recently, Air New Zealand baggage handlers were caught smuggling meth into the country.
“Organised crime groups using trusted insiders pose an increasing threat. Organised crime groups are leveraging a range of supply chain and professional facilitators, including more common use of trusted insiders,” the report said.
Customs intelligence manager Bruce Berry. Photo / Ben Dickens
Berry believes his staff will also be targets for recruitment and is working to counter attempts to corrupt officers through constant education. He said organised crime is looking for “any in” to provide information or advantage.
“I think New Zealand’s base-level understanding of corruption is quite naive. I think if you look at the infiltration of the supply chain with what we call trusted insiders – that’s people working within the supply chain to subvert systems – it’s quite evident that it’s well entrenched. In terms of corruption of officials, I think that’s the next step.”
Mexican cartels and Asian organised crime groups remain the biggest importers of drugs to New Zealand, as well as local crime groups like the Comancheros and the Banditos, according to the report.
Members of some local gangs are travelling to the Pacific to set up new chapters.
“It is almost certain that gang travel to Asia, Europe and the Pacific includes attempts to arrange drug imports to NZ,” the report said.
Berry, who has worked at Customs for 40 years, said the Headhunters are established in the Cook Islands, the Comancheros want to set up in Tonga and the Sinaloa Cartel has been targeting Fiji.
Berry said violence witnessed in overseas jurisdictions like the Netherlands, where crime gangs are locked in a murderous struggle with authorities, will “inevitably” turn up in New Zealand. In recent years in the Netherlands, a lawyer representing a witness in the trial of an alleged drug gangster and a journalist were assassinated.
Asked whether targeted assassinations could happen in New Zealand, Berry said “targeted gang hits are a thing of now”.
Police Association President Chris Cahill told the Herald violence between gangs in New Zealand is at a level “we’ve never seen”.
Police Association president Chris Cahill. Photo / Mark Mitchell
“The number of drive-by shootings we see now - they are almost a daily occurrence and certainly several a week. Our officers now when they’re stopping a gang car, they take it for granted that they think there will be a firearm in that vehicle.”
He says the arrival of 501s with gang links has increased efforts to turn police into insiders, although he says largely this has not been successful.
“Some of these key 501 deportee gang members – one of the first things when they set up in New Zealand was to look to see if the police were able to be opened up for corruption, and several approaches were made.”
The intelligence reports said 501 deportees with gang links have “almost certainly” increased drug trafficking knowledge, experience and leadership in domestic gangs.
Cahill told the Herald New Zealand was “limited in our preparation” as organised crime groups became more sophisticated.
The threat assessment report noted that more resources were needed to counter the evolving threats to New Zealand.
Customs Minister Casey Costello said resourcing at Customs is being monitored.
“We need to have a strong border, particularly to meet the growing threat from organised crime, and this means continually assessing our capability and investment in this area.”
She said she’d spoken to staff at Customs about violence or threats being used against workers.
“Given the criminal groups and money involved in the illicit drug trade it would be naive to think that Customs officers are immune to such risks.”
Figures released to the Herald show in the first five months of this year, 2.3 tonnes of illegal drugs were seized by Customs’ frontline officers at the New Zealand border, including 806kg methamphetamine, 392kg MDMA and 340kg of cocaine.
In the same time period, overseas partners have stopped more than 1.6 tonnes of drugs before they reached New Zealand.
Michael Morrah is a senior investigative reporter/team leader at the Herald. He won the best coverage of a major news event at the 2024 Voyager NZ Media Awards and has twice been named reporter of the year. He has been a broadcast journalist for 20 years and joined the Herald in July 2024.
