Illicit drug report shows traffickers using new tactics

[Alison Myrden]

Thought this was interesting...

 

Check t out...

 

 

Love and a squish,

 

 

Alison

xx

 

 

 

 

 

Illicit drug report shows traffickers using new tactics

 

AM - Friday, 11 May , 2007 08:29:00

 

Reporter: Barney Porter

 

 

 

TONY EASTLEY: The amount of drugs seized by Australian police and customs officials has dropped significantly according to the latest Illicit Drug Data Report.

 

In the last financial year, six tonnes of drugs were seized compared to 13 tonnes in the year before. The report is being released later today by the Australian Crime Commission.

 

But the Australian National Council on Drugs says while the amount of drugs has dropped, the number of seizures has actually increased, indicating that the style of trafficking has changed.

 

Barney Porter explains.

 

BARNEY PORTER: Each year, the Australian Crime Commission paints a picture of the size and type of the drug busts made across the country.

 

The latest Illicit Drug Data Report shows police and customs officials took hold of six metric tonnes of drugs, in 55,000 separate seizures.

 

The Minister for Justice and Customs, Senator David Johnston.

 

DAVID JOHNSTON: In the particular year in question 2005-2006, 78,500 people were arrested across Australia with respect to drug related offences. That's an increase of 1,000 more than the previous year. There was 4.4 tonnes of cannabis seized during the year, 1.3 tonnes of amphetamine-type stimulates, 46 kilograms of cocaine and 29 kilograms of heroin. Here's a bit of a snapshot.

 

BARNEY PORTER: Yet the amount of drugs recovered has dropped by half since the previous financial year, in which police seized more than 13 tonnes.

 

Gino Vumbaca is the Executive Officer of the Australian National Council on Drugs. He attributes the decline to a change in the style of drug trafficking.

 

GINO VUMBACA: The recent intelligence we're receiving, which suggests that there's lots of what they call, I think the Chinese call it ant-style trafficking, where you have lots of people bringing in smaller amounts, and that's to avoid detection.

 

Because the detection has improved so much at the bulk sort of end of the market, like through shipping containers and border security and customs and those sorts of things, and intelligence for big operations, syndicates are using a lot of people to bring in small amounts, which means that your number of seizures are going up but your volume is going down.

 

BARNEY PORTER: The majority of cannabis consumed and seized in Australia is domestically produced.

 

But the Minister David Johnston says most of the amphetamine-style drugs, such as ice and ecstasy, are imported from South East Asia. The Minister says there's been a drop in domestic backyard laboratories that produce amphetamines.

 

He credits this to a nation-wide restriction on the sale of cold and flu tablets that contain pseudo ephedrine, one of the ingredients used to make ice.

 

DAVID JOHNSTON: We've had a substantial decrease in the tonnages, we've had a 23 per cent drop in the laboratories, and the laboratories are what's turning the pseudo ephedrine products into methamphetamine.

 

As I see it - and I think the report is very clear - the war goes on, but we are winning very significant battles.

 

BARNEY PORTER: But Gino Vambuca says this may not be an entirely accurate picture. He says Australia is copying a regional trend towards super-labs where millions of pills are produced each year.

 

GINO VUMBACA: Well, the latest advice we've got is that the number of laboratories in Australia may be decreasing, but their size is increasing. Because chemicals are harder to get as well, that they're being concentrated into fewer labs that are larger in size.

 

BARNEY PORTER: And who is behind it? Is it just backyard operations or are we talking about major organised crime syndicates?

 

GINO VUMBACA: Generally you're going to be talking major organised crime. Even if it's in someone's backyard, they're being funded and paid for by major organised crime. I mean, we saw in Melbourne with the Mokbel case and all of that, we know that there is you know, amphetamines, methamphetamines and other illicit drugs, were funding a lot of the operations.

 

And even though there might be a cook here and a cook there, operating small labs, that they would be in fact working for organised crime, and being protected and funded by organised crime.

 

BARNEY PORTER: While general drug consumption is steadily declining, there's a growing trend towards amphetamine use.

 

Part of this week's Federal Budget included $150-million "war on ice" strategy with the money going towards law enforcement, as well as education and harm minimisation programs.

 

TONY EASTLEY: Barney Porter.