Samoa police officer charged for corruption

A police officer in Samoa has been arrested and charged with accepting a bribe in relation to a drug smuggling case connected to neighbouring American Samoa.

The officer is accused of accepting a bribe from a man charged with the possession of more than $US150,000 worth of cocaine and heroin.

The man had tried to move the drugs through Faleolo International Airport with his Vietnamese wife, who is facing separate charges of bribery in American Samoa.

The Samoa police commissioner, Fuiavailili Egon Keil, said he had zero tolerance for people who betray the trust of the community.

There will also be an internal police investigation, Fuiavaillili said.