Fiji Police say all 39 cocaine bars missing from court exhibit room

Fiji police have confirmed that nearly 40 kilograms of cocaine stored in a High Court exhibit room were found to have been replaced with flour.

The 39 cocaine bars were stored in the Suva High Court exhibit room. According to local media reports, the street value of the missing cocaine was valued at about FJ$30 million (US$14m).

Earlier this month, Fiji Police launched an investigation after seven out of the 39 cocaine bars had went missing.

In a statement on Tuesday, Fiji Police confirmed that "forensic tests" on the remaining drug exhibits had all returned negative.

"The exhibits were all tampered with and the investigation is focused on those directly charged with the management of the exhibits at the High Court Registry," the statement said.

Police also confirmed that one person of interest allegedly involved in the incident is currently out of the country and will be questioned.

Fiji's Justice Minister Siromi Turaga described the disappearance of the drugs as "shocking".

"No stone will be left unturned. Anyone found guilty will be held accountable," he told parliament on Tuesday afternoon.

Turaga asked the public to "trust the process" and allow the police to lead the investigation.

Watch Chief Justice Salesi Temo speak to media outside his chambers in Suva below.

Opposition MP Jone Usamate said "the replacement of the cocaine with flour" was a "sad indictment".

"How do we know now that what is in all those exhibits [held at the Suva High Court] is actually there?"

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, less than a week ago, told local reporters that the security of the exhibits at the Suva High Court needed to be more secure.

"[The idsappearance of the cocaine bars] tells everybody that it was not secure in the first place or as secure as we thought it was," Rabuka was quoted as saying by The Fiji Times.

This story was first published in RNZ Pacific.