Kiwi 'kava mule' arrested in Oz

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A New Zealand man has been arrested in Australia's Northern Territory after allegedly acting as drug mule transporting kava to Aboriginal communities.

The 23-year-old New Zealander, who has not been named, was charged in Arnhem Land in the north-east of the territory with possession and supply of a trafficable amount of kava, the Northern Territory News reported.

A large amount of kava was discovered at the local Gove Airport -- 1000km east of Darwin -- overnight after detectives from the Northern Substance Abuse Intelligence Desk checked baggage at the airport.

Detectives found 19kg of kava separated into 18 different bags. The street value of the drugs was estimated at A$19,000 ($23,800).

Northern Territory police last month caught a 27 year-old Tongan tourist with 44 bags containing 38kg of kava. They said they were trying to stop kava getting to remote communities.

"There are people in the Gove area who are making a lot of money from black market kava," they said.

Aboriginal elders initially imported kava to Arnhem Land 20 years ago as a less damaging alternative to alcohol.

A group with links to Tonga and some local community leaders reportedly became rich from the kava trade, but the drug was blamed for a range of problems including malnutrition, liver damage and heart attacks, as well as the demise of an entire football competition.

Kava has since been banned in the Northern Territory, except in a handful of communities that have chosen to sell it under licence.

- NZPA