Liquid meth smuggled into New Zealand disguised as Canadian beer kills 21-year-old man after he takes sip

A 21-year-old man from Auckland, New Zealand, died after unknowingly drinking from a can that contained liquid methamphetamine instead of beer. The can was part of a case labeled “Honey Bear Beer,” which appeared to be a Canadian product.

Aiden was at home in March 2023 with his brother-in-law, Billy, and a friend when they decided to try the drink. “We thought it was a new brand that’s about to start up in New Zealand and we saw the Canadian logo, the flag logo. It was like, oh cool, we thought it was from Canada, that’s pretty cool then,” Billy told W5’s Avery Haines, CTV reports.

After taking a sip, Aiden said something tasted off. “Hey bro, does the beer taste salty?” he asked. Billy said his own drink tasted fine, but when he tried Aiden’s, he immediately spat it out. “It tasted like sea salt with chemicals,” he said. Moments later, Aiden began panicking and called his mother.

“He was screaming out, ‘I want my mom, I want my mom. I’m dying, I want mom,’” Billy said. Aiden’s mother, still on the phone, had to listen as her son called for her. His sister Angela, who is a doctor, rushed home and began CPR when paramedics took an hour to arrive.

Aiden was placed in a coma but died five days later from multiple organ failure caused by a lethal dose of methamphetamine.

The can that killed Aiden became the key to uncovering what police now describe as the largest methamphetamine seizure in New Zealand’s history. Investigators raided a storage unit in Auckland and found about 700 kilograms of liquid meth hidden inside shipments of beverages.

Those shipments included kombucha, coconut water, and nearly 29,000 cans of Honey Bear Beer imported from Toronto.

Authorities charged Baltej Singh, a supermarket owner, with importing large quantities of meth disguised as drinks. Aiden’s employer, Himatjit “Jimmy” Kahlon, was caught on security cameras taking cases from the storage unit. Police said he helped process the liquid meth into crystal form and handed out leftover cans that still contained the drug.

Kahlon was convicted of manslaughter in February 2025 and sentenced to 21 years in prison.  Singh was arrested at Auckland Airport while attempting to flee to Dubai and sentenced to 22 years for importing methamphetamine and related offenses.

Detective Superintendent Greg Williams said meth sells for nearly $300,000 per kilogram in New Zealand, far higher than in other countries. “Transnational crime groups look at countries like New Zealand and go, ‘This is the golden nugget,’” he said.

“Shut them down and take them to jail,” Billy said. “This is murder. To be honest, I see it as murder.”