Success as police uproot cannabis

[kiwi_farmer]

By MICHELLE DUFF - Manawatu Standard

28/03/2009

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/2301...uproot-cannabis

© 2009 Fairfax New Zealand Limited

 

 

A cannabis swoop by Central Districts police has netted more than 1800 plants and seen 12 people arrested for drug-related offences.

 

Operation Christie is a yearly drug crackdown by a 25-strong police team, who join with Air Force personnel to wipe out drug growing in the region.

 

In a two-day "recovery" phase using Iroquois helicopters and a separate ground force team, police seized 1834 plants across the Manawatu, Horowhenua and Tararua regions.

 

Of these, 852 plants were pulled from a clandestine spot on the Puketoi ranges, southeast of Dannevirke, in an area dense with bush.

 

The ground force team unearthed 190 plants, and arrested 12 people for offences ranging from cultivation to possession of cannabis.

 

District cannabis co-ordinator Constable Dave Kirk said the first stages of Operation Christie began in November last year. Cannabis is usually planted in September to October.

 

Police use this time to gather intelligence on possible growers and locations in the region, before zeroing in on cannabis plots and making arrests over a two-day stretch in March.

 

During the recovery phase, police are winched down from the Iroquois to yank plants from the ground.

 

The main aim is to track the plots back to growers and eradicate as many plants as possible, Mr Kirk said.

 

"The bottom line is, we don't want drugs out on the streets. If we can't get the offender, we pull the plants."

 

Despite the number of plants found, police are beginning to notice a trend towards indoor growing, he said.

 

"We are chasing a lot of people indoors, because they get pissed off with us pulling their crops out year after year so it comes to a time where they change their operation," Mr Kirk said.

 

This is the fourth year the operation has been run, with the number of plants seized down from last year's record high of about 2000.

 

It takes 12 days to recover plants from the entire Central Districts region, which stretches from North Taranaki to Ruapehu, and down to Otaki.

[Koselitz]

By MICHELLE DUFF - Manawatu Standard

28/03/2009

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/2301...uproot-cannabis

© 2009 Fairfax New Zealand Limited

 

 

A cannabis swoop by Central Districts police has netted more than 1800 plants and seen 12 people arrested for drug-related offences.

 

Operation Christie is a yearly drug crackdown by a 25-strong police team, who join with Air Force personnel to wipe out drug growing in the region.

 

In a two-day "recovery" phase using Iroquois helicopters and a separate ground force team, police seized 1834 plants across the Manawatu, Horowhenua and Tararua regions.

 

Of these, 852 plants were pulled from a clandestine spot on the Puketoi ranges, southeast of Dannevirke, in an area dense with bush.

 

The ground force team unearthed 190 plants, and arrested 12 people for offences ranging from cultivation to possession of cannabis.

 

District cannabis co-ordinator Constable Dave Kirk said the first stages of Operation Christie began in November last year. Cannabis is usually planted in September to October.

 

Police use this time to gather intelligence on possible growers and locations in the region, before zeroing in on cannabis plots and making arrests over a two-day stretch in March.

 

During the recovery phase, police are winched down from the Iroquois to yank plants from the ground.

 

The main aim is to track the plots back to growers and eradicate as many plants as possible, Mr Kirk said.

 

"The bottom line is, we don't want drugs out on the streets. If we can't get the offender, we pull the plants."

 

Despite the number of plants found, police are beginning to notice a trend towards indoor growing, he said.

 

"We are chasing a lot of people indoors, because they get pissed off with us pulling their crops out year after year so it comes to a time where they change their operation," Mr Kirk said.

 

This is the fourth year the operation has been run, with the number of plants seized down from last year's record high of about 2000.

 

It takes 12 days to recover plants from the entire Central Districts region, which stretches from North Taranaki to Ruapehu, and down to Otaki.

 

Well...Go to the indoor cultive...