Two Australian men have been charged with allegedly trafficking guns to a violent paramilitary group in Indonesia responsible for kidnapping a New Zealand pilot.

A joint taskforce — comprised of officers from the Australian Federal Police, ASIO, Queensland Police and New Zealand Police — was established after members of the National Liberation Army of West Papua kidnapped Phillip Mehrtens in the Indonesian province in February 2023.

Mehrtens was taken after landing a small aircraft at a remote airstrip at Paro Airport and held for 592 days before being released in September 2024.

The two-year investigation has now led to the arrest of a 64-year-old man from NSW and a 44-year-old man from Queensland.

Police allegedly found evidence linking the pair to the trafficking of guns from Austr

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