Virgin Australia crew allegedly raped, robbed in Fiji

The Fiji government on Thursday said police were investigating incidents involving two crew members of Australian airline Virgin Australia who were allegedly victims of rape and theft in Nadi in the early hours on New Year's Day.

The crew members were in the popular tourist destination on a layover before they were supposed to fly out the next day, said Fiji acting police commissioner Juki Fong Chew.

Virgin, which said it was aware of the alleged incidents, has sent people to Fiji to provide support, but did not provide further details in a statement to Reuters.

Fiji police said the investigation found some Virgin crew members had gone to a nightclub in Nadi.

“Unfortunately, two crew members were victims of alleged theft and rape after exiting the nightclub to find their way back to the hotel,” Chew said.

Viliame Gavoka, Fiji's deputy prime minister and minister for tourism and civil aviation, said there were two separate incidents of alleged theft and sexual assault which affected two different Virgin crew members.

Gavoka said a suspect known to police for the alleged sexual assault had been questioned and the investigation was ongoing.

The South Pacific island nation is a popular tourist destination and received 76,845 visitors in November, mostly from Australia, New Zealand and North America, according to the country's tourism website.

Australia's department of foreign affairs and trade told Reuters it was aware of the reports but declined to comment further.

Reuters