Under The Cover Of Dawn

[Tom]

Under the cover of dawn, squads prepare to swoop

BROOKE JACOBSON

Thursday, 27 May 2004

 

 

 

Most of Dubbo slept as more than 200 police gathered before sunrise yesterday to take part in one of the State's largest drug bust operations.

 

Local police and detectives joined officers from the State Crime Command, NSW gangs squad as well as drug squad officers and dog squad handlers for a briefing at a secret location.

 

Outside, a large contingent of local and national media impatiently stamped their feet against the cold and waited for the orders to move out.

 

The officer in charge of the operation, Detective Superintendent Ken McKay from the gangs squad, and former Orana local area commander Superintendent Ian Lovell, gave the troops a pep talk before the officers armed themselves and split up into groups to carry out raids on properties across the region.

 

At 6.30am eight officers and a member of the dog squad arrived in Birch Avenue and parked a few metres down the road from a home.

 

The group of police - with media following close behind - attracted the attention of several early morning walkers, as they quickly moved towards a house.

 

Two officers pounded on the front door saying "police, open up", as other officers surrounded the side and backyard of the house.

 

The officers eventually broke down the door and spoke with two people inside the home after finding some cannabis on the property.

 

Once the excitement died down, police sniffer dog Rocky was brought in to investigate the inside of the house and surrounding yards.

 

At the same time raids were carried out on 10 other properties in the Dubbo region, including a home in Whylandra Street and a rural property 20 kilometres north of Gilgandra on the Newell Highway.

 

The farmstead home at Biddon could be easily seen from the road, with a dam to one side of the house and a line of scrub at the rear of the property.

 

Police interviewed a number of people at the house, while other officers conducted an 'emu walk' across the paddocks and drove into the scrub on bikes.

 

Back in town, at 7am Dubbo detectives had arrested another two people at a home in Bultje Street.

 

A number of police cars blocked the streets, while the pair was led from the home with towels covering their heads.

 

They were placed in separate paddy wagons and taken to Dubbo Police Station.

 

During the raids, police recovered firearms, ammunition, amphetamines, prohibited weapons including a crossbow and samurai sword, and chemical precursors as well as evidence of a number of clandestine laboratories.

 

Up to $22 million worth of amphetamines and $1 million worth of cannabis was seized.

 

Orana local area crime manager Detective Inspector Michael Willing said the drug bust was a big win for police and the community.

 

"Eighteen months ago Dubbo detectives came across evidence of this syndicate, which was responsible for transporting amphetamines and cannabis throughout NSW and into other states," he said.

 

"You don't have to be Einstein to realise that the volume of other crimes - such as break and enters, stolen cars, behavioural problems - are linked to the supply and use of drugs.

 

"Dubbo does have a problem with drugs and to have had this amount of drugs potentially pouring onto the streets of Dubbo was huge."

 

Mr Willing added organised crime was behind yesterday's drug bust, as well as other large drug busts in the region.

 

"These drugs that we've seized this week were destined for this town - our investigations will be ongoing, we're not going to stop."

 

Source.