Earlier: Two men are scheduled to appear in court today after allegedly attempting to smuggle 110kg of methamphetamine and two handguns into New Zealand inside golf cart batteries.
Two men have pleaded innocence after allegedly attempting to smuggle 110kg of methamphetamine and two handguns into New Zealand inside golf cart batteries.
The large quantity of "ice-like" methamphetamine has a street value of about $55 million and the seizure stopped an estimated $136.3m of social harm to the country, according to the NZ Drug Harm Index.
A Taiwanese national, 39, and a Chinese national, 27, were arrested by Customs investigators over the weekend and face charges for the importation and possession of a class A controlled drug.
They appeared in the Auckland District Court this afternoon.
Both were granted interim name suppression by Judge Philippa Cunningham.
As part of the name suppression argument, the court heard the Taiwanese man is in New Zealand on a business visa. Judge Cunningham granted him name suppression through her "inherent powers" until a full argument could be made with the aid of an interpreter.
The Chinese man, however, had "working knowledge of English" and is in the country illegally, the court heard.
He was supported in court by his mum, who had flown in from Beijing.
A close up of a large ice-like methamphetamine crystal discovered by Customs. Photo / Supplied
His lawyer, Peter Winter, successfully argued for name suppression on the basis that his two elderly grandmas back in China "had no idea what's going on".
He said there was already significant media coverage of the drug bust, which he termed "an extensive expose" and "reasonably sensational".
There was concern, Winter suggested, that his client's grandparents may be adversely affected if they read New Zealand media reports or if the state-run Chinese media decided to also publish a story on the case.
Despite opposition and questions about whether Chinese media would report such a story, Judge Cunningham agreed with Winter and said it "would be a shock to any grandparent".
Both men pleaded not guilty and were remanded in custody until a name suppression hearing next week.
Customs investigations manager Bruce Berry said it was one of the top five methamphetamine seizures he had seen.
It was part of more than 343kg of drugs destined for the New Zealand market in just over the past year that had been intercepted by Customs, he said.
Increasingly large sized seizures were becoming an international trend and New Zealand was "no stranger to this".
"What we are seeing is organised crime expanding its markets in the wake of gluts of cocaine and methamphetamine internationally," Berry said.
"Traditional borders mean nothing these days in the age of globalisation."
"The presence of loaded firearms concealed with the drugs is a very real concern and shows the lengths organised crime groups are prepared to go to. It also represents a changing risk profile to both our officers and the community at large," Berry said.
"Customs is committed to targeting and stopping smuggling attempts like this one, and the criminal syndicates responsible for trying to bring illicit drugs into our country with no concern for the devastating harm it causes."
Detective Inspector Paul Newman from the National Organised Crime Group said police have been working with Customs to bring the operation to a successful conclusion.
"It's another excellent example of the two agencies' collaboration and our focus to prevent the harm caused by drugs such as methamphetamine," Newman said.
"These illegal drugs are destructive and have no place in our communities.
"We know they cause negative health implications, and financial and social harm to users and their families.
