KUALA LUMPUR: Ten Malaysians were arrested at the Auckland International Airport in New Zealand Tuesday for trying to smuggle in methamphetamine worth NZ$10mil (RM24mil) in their shoes.

The New Zealand Herald reported Wednesday that Customs officers made the bust after stopping two members of a Malaysian tour group who arrived at the airport at midday Tuesday.

It said they were found to be carrying methamphetamine, or P, in their shoes after being questioned and searched, while the rest of the group were tracked down by Customs officers and airport police.

"All were revealed to be carrying between 800g and 1kg of P in their shoes. The current street value of P is approximately $1mil (RM2.4mil) per kilo," the daily said.

Eight men and two women aged between their early 20s and late 60s were arrested by police drug squad detectives and were set to appear in Manukau District Court later Wednesday.

It quoted Customs drug investigations manager Mark Day as saying that the bust involved the biggest number of drug couriers ever caught in a single incident at the New Zealand border.

"By embedding themselves in what appear to be legitimate tour groups, these criminals are trying to assume normal travel patterns so that they will not be targeted as high risk," he said.

According to the Malaysian Foreign Ministry, till March 31 this year, 833 out of the 1,880 Malaysians detained overseas were for drug-related offences - Bernama

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