Auckland entrepreneur David Shaida, who smuggled drugs while sitting on the board of King's School in Auckland, was struggling to pay his children's fees at the private school and his business ventures were crumbling.

Shaida has told friends that he smuggled nearly $3 million worth of drugs into New Zealand in order to fund his lifestyle. What no one knew was the extent of his trouble until after he was arrested.

The 47-year-old, with no previous criminal history, has pleaded guilty to importing millions of dollars of pure methamphetamine from Malaysia for supply and faces sentence next month.

Police say he and business partner Theodoor Graaf took up smuggling drugs first for an Auckland-based syndicate, then for the Malaysian Haji syndicate to help finance business ventures in New Caledonia.

The pair had hoped to set up a poultry business, a growing industry in the island country, and had looked into prawn farming in the region as well, but were running short of funds with no investors.

"They were certain it would be a success but couldn't get people to invest," Auckland Drug Squad Detective Sergeant John Sowter said.

Shaida had already been involved in two failed companies, which were liquidated this year.

Shaida had set up Brownridge Associates which had hoped to license and market a hydatids vaccine developed by AgResearch.

The deal with AgResearch fell through, however, and the company was liquidated in March this year. Another company, Rycobra, formerly known as Long White Cloud Wines, was liquidated in June.

For 12 months before his arrest he had worked as the export manager for Jasons Products, a company manufacturing environmentally friendly placemats.

Mr Sowter says Shaida was sure his New Caledonia venture would work. Shaida and Graaf would meet in an Auckland coffee shop to discuss their plans.

It was there Shaida struck up a relationship with an Iranian man who learnt of Shaida and Graaf's business troubles and allegedly made Shaida an offer he could not refuse - trafficking drugs between New Zealand, Singapore and Japan.

For his troubles he was paid between US$15,000 ($22,500) and US$30,000 ($45,000) per run. Mr Sowter says most drug couriers would normally get between US$5000 and US$10,000 per run.

Shaida got Graaf involved but Graaf eventually fell out with the Auckland dealers and went straight to the heads of "Haji", convincing Shaida to go with him.

Between them the pair are estimated to have smuggled nearly $13 million of high-quality P between New Zealand, Malaysia and Japan between about June last year and March this year.

Police have charged Graaf with smuggling nearly $11 million of that and found thousands of dollars and jewellery in his home when it was searched in April this year.

Shaida was caught with nearly $2 million of the drugs at Auckland airport and a further estimated $900,000 was found down the back of a couch in his Remuera home.

Police said his wife looked genuinely shocked when they searched the house in March, while long-time friend Ahmad Asghari says he was shocked when Shaida's family called to say his friend had been arrested at Auckland International Airport on March 15 this year following the police investigation.

He visited Shaida at his home in Remuera soon after his arrest and Shaida revealed he was having trouble even paying his three children's school fees. "He was always trying to help to get the lifestyle. I don't know if you call it a high flyer, but when you want to be on the stage you have to have money."

Chairman of King's School board of Governors Dr John Henley said if there had been any indication what trouble Shaida was in, the school would have acted on it.

Fees for King's School are between $8500 and $10,000 a year.

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