NRL club Brisbane Broncos have rallied around star forward Payne Haas after his father was arrested in the Philippines on drug charges this week. 

The father of Broncos superstar Payne Haas could face the death penalty if found guilty of drug trafficking in Indonesia. 

Gregor Johann Haas, 46, was arrested by police in Cebu City, in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines, on Wednesday. 



The Philippine Bureau of Immigration has released mugshot images of Haas Snr with efforts underway to have him extradited to Jakarta to face charges.

Police said they have been trying to track Haas Snr down ever since 5kg of methamphetamine was allegedly found at an undisclosed location in December. 

Philippine police also stated that Haas is a high-profile suspect allegedly connected to a Mexican cartel, with the US Drug Enforcement Agency involved in the investigation. 

'We have good cooperation with Australian police, so we will work with them too.' National Narcotics Agency spokesman Sulistyo Pudjo Hartono said.




Gregor Johann Haas, the father of Brisbane Broncos superstar Payne Haas, poses for his mugshot after being arrested in the Philippines





Haas now faces extradition to Jakarta, Indonesia where he could potentially face a firing squad

Under Indonesia's harsh drug importation laws those found in possession of illicit drugs can face the prospect of life behind bars or the firing squad. 

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade told Australian Associated Press that they are providing consular assistance to an Australian man arrested in the Philippines but cannot comment further due to privacy obligations. 

Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting anyone else in the Haas family is involved. 

Payne's mother, Joan Taufua, is in jail facing manslaughter charges after a car she was driving killed three people in 2022. 

Payne has been caring for his two younger brothers since then. The Broncos have rallied around Payne following the latest family incident. 




Brisbane Broncos coach Kevin Walters said the club would support Haas Jnr in every way 





Pat Carrigan, pictured left, is good friends with Haas Jnr and holds him in high regard

Brisbane coach Kevin Walters says the club are supporting Haas 'in every way'.

'Payne's a very strong individual and his family is as well. A lot of people probably don't understand or realise the person Payne is,' Walters said.

'He's a tremendous guy, tremendous family person and in this moment in time that he's going through we will get around him in every way we can to support him and his family. That's all we can do.

'Payne's just such a great person of integrity … and what he's doing with his family even before this incident is something we need to be very respectful of.'

Payne's close friend and teammate Pat Carrigan spoke on the high regard in which the Australian prop and five-time Broncos player of the year is held. 

'Everyone knows what Payne Haas can do as a football player. Me and him are really close, we're probably like family now, the two of us,' Carrigan said.

'His resilience and his caring, he's the first one to check on all the boys and then there's the load he carries willingly for us as a club, but also his family is pretty special.

'If there were more like Payne Haas in the world, I think it would be a better place.'




Gregor Johann Haas, 46, was arrested by police in Cebu City in the Philippines on Wednesday





Payne Haas (left) and his father Gregor are pictured at the 2019 Dally M awards

Haas Snr is expected to be extradited from the city of Manila, where he has been held in custody since his arrest, to Indonesia. 

However, officials in Australia may need to give approval for the extradition. 

The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was providing consular assistance to an Australian arrested in the Philippines. 

Indonesian officials told the Sydney Morning Herald that the Australian Federal Police were not involved in the arrest.

The last Australians to be executed in Indonesia were Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, the convicted ringleaders of the Bali Nine drug smugglers, in 2015. 

The nine Australians were arrested trying to smuggle 8.3kg of buy Heroin online to Australia on a flight out of Bali's airport in 2005.

Of the remaining seven only one, Renae Lawrence, has been released from jail while another Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen died in prison of cancer.




Police said they have been trying to track Haas Snr down ever since 5kg of methamphetamine was allegedly found at an undisclosed location in December. His arrest is pictured





The father of Broncos superstar Payne Haas (pictured) could face the death penalty after being accused of trafficking large quantities of illegal drugs in Indonesia




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The arrest comes after father-of-two Troy Smith was accused of drug possession and drug trafficking after Indonesian authorities raided his hotel room on April 30. 

Officers allegedly found more than 3g of methamphetamine in a tube of toothpaste, a bong and 0.04 of methamphetamine in a sunglasses case. 

The 49-year-old's lawyers have argued that Smith purchased the methamphetamine in Bali and struggles with addiction issues. 

They said the package was sent to their client from a friend as thanks for helping with the purchase of a car, and he did not know what it contained. 

Smith is currently being held in a crowded cell at police headquarters in Denpasar. 


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