British Virgin Islands premier Andrew Fahie held in cocaine smuggling sting operation

The premier of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) has been arrested on charges of alleged money laundering and conspiracy to import cocaine, according to a criminal complaint.

Andrew Fahie, 51, was detained in Miami on Thursday, along with Oleanvine Maynard, a senior BVI port official, in an operation led by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).

They had been at an airport to meet Mexican drug traffickers, who in reality were undercover DEA agents, to see a shipment of $700,000 (£560,000) in cash that BVI officials expected to receive for helping smuggle cocaine from Colombia to Miami and New York, the complaint said.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has said she was "appalled" by the allegations.

Ms Truss said: “This afternoon, the Premier of the British Virgin Islands, Andrew Fahie, was arrested in the United States on charges related to drugs trafficking and money laundering. “I am appalled by these serious allegations.” She held talks with BVI governor John Rankin and stressed the importance of the recent inquiry into corruption on the Caribbean archipelago.

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The British Virgin Islands, with a population about 35,000 people, is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean Sea, located east of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

The governor is appointed by the Queen, the territory’s ultimate executive authority, and acts on her behalf, while the premier is the elected head of the government.

Mr Fahie's arrest was first revealed by Mr Rankin, who issued a statement, saying: “I realise this will be shocking news for people in the territory. And I would call for calm at this time.”

A DEA confidential source had previously met with Ms Maynard, the manager director of the Caribbean territory’s port authority, and her son after being introduced by a group of self-proclaimed Lebanese Hezbollah operatives, according to the complaint.

After Mr Fahie became involved, it said, the BVI officials agreed to to let the smugglers bring the cocaine through the port at Tortola before continuing on to the US.

“Anyone involved with bringing dangerous drugs into the United States will be held accountable, no matter their position,” DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said.

“Today is yet another example of DEA’s resolve to hold corrupt members of government responsible for using their positions of power to provide a safe haven for drug traffickers and money launderers in exchange for their own financial and political gain.”