You could not make this up......

New Zealand's biggest meth bust a 'comedy of errors'

If the men believed to be behind the biggest known methamphetamine shipment in New Zealand history were trying to keep a low profile, they did a poor job.

Driving around the small surfing and fishing community of Ahipara in Northland, the three Tongan men and two Chinese nationals stood out like "dog's balls", locals said.

They were reportedly seen towing a 9m Bayliner boat behind a maroon Toyota Prado 4WD.
The seized drugs, worth almost $500 million, are laid out at the police station.
NZ Police / Supplied

And it wasn't a hit and run mission either - locals said they'd been in the area at least a week before they were arrested, staying at the Northerner in Kaitaia, a tired motor inn where the decor hasn't changed since the 1970s.
Ahipara surfboard maker Peter Furze saw a group of men attempting to launch their boat.
Tony Wall

The men were friendly enough, but people who had dealings with them are terrified now that they have been linked to such a huge smuggling operation.

One senior and respected member of the community pleaded that his name not be used in any media coverage. He mentioned "triads" and said "we're all in lock-down now".

Another man, who dealt directly with the group, said: "There will be some big players, some grumpy people around, losing half a billion dollars' worth because a bunch of hick locals stumbled upon something."
The men paid $98,000 cash for this boat, which they allegedly used to retrieve the drugs after failing to launch a ...
NZ Police / Supplied

The men paid $98,000 cash for this boat, which they allegedly used to retrieve the drugs after failing to launch a bigger vessel.

Police have yet to say how they think the drugs were delivered, but the theory that a plane was used seems plausible.
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A witness said he heard a twin engined turbo prop aircraft, which was unusual because only twin piston-engined planes flew to Kaitaia and not at that time of night.

The witness used to be in the Air Force and knows a turbo prop when he hears one. He went outside and saw the plane's lights only about 500 feet above the water.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/8 ... -of-errors