Police in French Polynesia are transferring four suspected drug smugglers to France after arresting them in possession of more than 1.4 tonnes of cocaine last month.
Cocaine Photo: SUPPLIED
The four, including a French citizen, were arrested within a week on two separate yachts owned by a Frenchman.
The public broadcaster said the four were escorted by 12 police officer and flown out on scheduled aircraft bound for Paris.
The prosecutor in Tahiti said the four could face jail terms of up to 30 years.
Two of them were arrested off the Marquesas Islands and two in Tahiti after being stopped with a total of 1438 kilograms of cocaine which is reportedly worth about $US57 million.
The prosecutor, Herve Leroy said for the South Pacific the haul was unprecedented in its size and showed that French Polynesia was a transit area for drugs sent to Australia and New Zealand.