French cruise ship passenger 'found with $10.8m of cocaine' appears in court

A French tourist allegedly found in possession of 24kg of cocaine in Northland has appeared in court.

No pleas were taken when Alexander Steeve Yelengwe Yonkwa-Dingom, 26, briefly appeared in the Whangarei District Court today and was remanded in custody.

He is facing one charge of possession of cocaine for supply and another of failing without reasonable excuse to assist a police constable exercising a search power when requested to do so under the Search and Surveillance Act 2012.

According to court documents, Yonkwa-Dingom hails from Pau, a city in south western France.

Deane Begbie, police Field Crime Manager and Bruce Berry, Customs Investigation Manager, with the 24kg cocaine haul. Photo/Tania White

The cseized cocaine was worth up to $10.8 million.

The charge of possessing a Class A controlled drug such as cocaine carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.

In court today, Yonkwa-Dingom's lawyer Arthur Fairley sought a remand without plea and did not apply for bail.

Judge Duncan Harvey remanded Yonkwa-Dingom back in custody to re-appear on January 12, next year.