A former New Zealand public servant has reportedly been arrested in Argentina trying to leave the country with five kilograms of cocaine hidden in a suitcase with a false bottom.
Sharon Armstrong, aged in her early 50s, of Wellington has been detained in Buenos Aires since her arrest on April 13, the Dominion Post said today.
Ms Armstrong was former deputy chief executive of the Maori Language Commission and had been working as a contractor for Maori education and language company Haemata in Wellington, since February.
Argentinian officials confirmed that a New Zealand woman named Sharon Armstrong had been arrested with the cocaine by airport police while trying to board a flight to London.
It was understood she was going to London to meet a man she had been dating online.
It was unclear whether Ms Armstrong had been charged.
Labour MP Parekura Horomia said he was surprised at the news of the arrest.
"I haven't seen her for a few years but I did some work with her. It honestly does seem very out of character."
Friends of Ms Armstrong believed she had fallen victim to an online dating scam.
