According to court documents obtained by Stuff, the Aucklander said he believed he was flying to Thailand to pick up an honour from the United Nations for the country’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

He was also promised US$23 million.

About 18 months before his arrest, Chang was contacted through WhatsApp by a man who called himself George, telling him he needed to be in Bangkok to sign a certificate.

Instead, he was duped into taking drugs in his luggage.

While he was in Bangkok, a woman met Chang at his hotel and gave him a black carry-on bag to “carry gifts for officials he would be meeting in Australia”, the court documents said.