By Zach Hope, Amilia Rosa and Michael Chammas
The father of Australian rugby league player Payne Haas has been arrested in the Philippines and is accused of running enough drugs in Indonesia to qualify for the death penalty.
Gregor Johann Haas was arrested in Cebu City on Wednesday and now faces extradition.
An image of Gregor Johann Haas circulating in Indonesian media. The Australian citizen was arrested on Wednesday.
Indonesian authorities said they had been hunting the 46-year-old since last December after police discovered five kilograms of crystal methamphetamine at an undisclosed location.
In a post to Instagram, police also linked Haas to Mexico’s infamous Sinaloa drug cartel.
“We suspect him to have networks all over Asia, and we also suspect he has networks in Australia,” National Narcotics Agency [BNN] spokesman Sulistyo Pudjo Hartono told this masthead.
“We have good cooperation with Australian police, so we will work with them too.”
Brisbane Broncos player Payne Haas (left) and Gregor Haas arrive at the 2019 Dally M Awards at the Hordern Pavilion in SydneyCredit: AAP
Indonesia takes a dim view of illicit drugs and maintains a death penalty for those convicted of significant infringements like those alleged against Haas.
Authorities there will attempt to extradite him from the city of Manila, where he is being held. Haas is alleged to have been using the fake name, Fernando Tremendo Chimenea.
The last Australians to be executed in Indonesia were Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran in 2015.
Payne Haas’ NRL club, the Brisbane Broncos, confirmed it was aware of the incident.
Broncos coach Kevin Walters paid tribute to Haas after his side’s one-point win over the Sea Eagles during the NRL’s Magic Round on Friday night, which came just hours after news about his father broke in Australia.
“We’re supporting Payne in every way we can,” Walters said. “Payne’s a very strong individual and his family is as well.
“A lot of people probably don’t understand or realise the person that Payne is. He’s a tremendous guy and a tremendous family person and this moment in time he’s going through, we’ll get around him in every way we can. Payne is such a great person of integrity.
“I’m sure he’ll find a way, and we’ll help him find a way.”
The younger Haas has previously shown enormous resilience to overcome personal adversity throughout a career that has been plagued by family issues.
A screengrab from a social media post, allegedly showing the arrest of Australian Gregor Haas in the Philippines.Credit: Instagram
His mother Uiatu “Joan” Taufua faces manslaughter charges after a head-on car crash near the Gold Coast in December 2022 that killed three people. She has not yet entered any formal pleas, with the case adjourned until July to allow her to undergo further psychiatric testing.
There is no suggestion anyone else in the family is involved in the allegations against Gregor Haas.
His arrest was aided by Philippine investigators.
The passports of Gregor Haas, who has been arrested in the Philippines. Credit: Instagram
But it was unclear how an extradition would proceed from here, if at all. At least one senior figure from the Indonesian National Police believed Australia’s “approval” was necessary.
Professor of international law at Australian National University Donald Rothwell, however, said Philippine-Indonesia extradition would be a bilateral process and Australia would not need to be involved.
Complicating matters, he said the Philippines was a signatory to an international agreement that prohibited extraditions if they were to lead to an execution.
Sulistyo said his agency expected “no problems” with having Haas extradited to Indonesia.
One possible option was for the Philippines to send Haas to Indonesia under an agreement that he would not be sentenced to death if convicted.
The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was providing consular assistance to an Australian arrested in the Philippines. It declined to provide further details.
Indonesian officials have told this masthead the Australian Federal Police were not involved in the arrest.
Haas’ capture follows the arrest of Australian accountant Troy Smith in Bali with an alleged 3.5 grams of methamphetamines.
Smith’s lawyers hope to have him spared what could be a lengthy jail sentence if he is convicted and sent to rehabilitation instead if convicted.
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