EXCITING OPIUM RAID

Taranaki Daily News, 30 November 1932, Page 7

EXCITING OPIUM RAID

A SENTRY OVERPOWERED.

SMART WORK BY POLICE.

Suva, Nov. 15.

An interesting story of a police raid upon a Chinese opium den situated on the highest point in the hill country adjoining the Tamavua Valley, some four or five miles from Suva, was related in the Police Court yesterday, when seven Chinese appeared to answer charges connected with the smoke of opinion, states the correspondent of the New Zealand Herald. Lamps, pipes and jars of opium secured by the raiding force were exhibited in Court.

Inspector Kermode, of the Fiji Constabulary, related how he and some carefully selected Fijian constables climbed up the Tamavua Valley at three o’clock on a Sunday morning, surrounded the house, and lay in hiding in the thick ' scrub near the building. They lay there . until 11 o’clock, when, after several Chinese had entered the house, they i made their successful raid. At 10 o’clock a watchman had come out of the house and taken his place in a little sheltered retreat that had -been 1 specially built for him. The house itself commanded a magnificent view of the surrounding country, being built ...upon the highest hill in the valley. The watchman, from his place of concealment, also commanded all approaches. The watchman, however, was taken completely by surprise, the barefooted Fijians being on top of him before he could give warning. An attempt at a struggle was quickly subdued. As the police entered the house several Chinese escaped by bursting through the reed walls of the house, but they were followed into the scrub and quickly overpowered, although attempting to put up a fight. As a result of the raid fines totalling £125 were imposed. Fines to the amount of £BO were paid, but several of the Chinese elected to serve terms of imprisonment. In view of the serious possibility of the opium habit spreading to the natives, the police maintain a very watchful eye on the importation of the drug into Fiji, but this is a very difficult traffic to detect. It is believed that it is smuggled into the smaller ports and transferred by devious routes to the capital. In regard to the source of supply the Chinese are very loyal, and it is almost impossible to get any information from captured men as to where the supply came from. In the opium smuggling system the indormer is unknown.