Two men are to appear in the Darwin Magistrates Court today following the seizure of 60kg of kava on the weekend.

Superintendent Tony Fuller from the Drug and Organised Crime Division said on Sunday Police attended the Darwin International Airport and conducted luggage searches on people arriving from Sydney.

“Police located a quantity of luggage belonging to two males which contained 500 individual deal bags of kava, weighing a total of 60kg.

“Police believe these drugs were intended for communities in remote Arnhem Land, where these drugs have an estimated street value of $60,000.

“The two males aged 39 and 51 were charged with supply commercial quantity of kava without a licence and possess commercial quantity of kava without a licence and remanded in custody to appear in court today.

“An Arnhem Land kava dealer was recently sentenced to four years prison for similar offending. You would think that would be enough of a deterrent but once again we have alleged offenders attempting to profit from the sale of kava.

“NT Police are dedicated to removing harmful substances from remote communities. We urge anyone who may witness any drug activity, to contact Police on 131 444 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.”