More than $20M worth of cannabis seized in NSW

[Naycha]

http://www.mygc.com.au/20m-worth-cannabis-seized-nsw/

 

More than $20M worth of cannabis seized in NSW

 

Shanee Dobeson

 

March 7, 2016 2:15 pm

 

Police have seized cannabis with an estimated street value of more than $20 million in northern NSW.

 

Detectives from State Crime Command’s Drug Squad have been conducting raids on outdoor cannabis crops throughout northern parts of the state since late last year.

 

Crops were targeted in the Richmond, Mid North Coast, Manning Great Lakes, Tweed/Byron and Coffs/Clarence local area commands.

 

The most recent raids were last week in the Coffs/Clarence Local Area Command where police seized 2619 cannabis plants with an estimated potential street value of $5.23 million. That included one crop site at Nymboida where 530 plants were removed. That one crop alone had an estimated potential street value of more than $1 million.

 

It brings the total number of cannabis plants seized during the 2015/16 Cannabis Eradication Program to 10,705 with an estimated potential street value of $21.4 million.

 

Six people are expected to appear at court for cannabis cultivation offences, with investigations into other individuals continuing.

 

 

 

Commander of the Drug Squad, Detective Superintendent Tony Cooke, said the Cannabis Eradication program was a key component of the NSW

Police Force’s efforts to remove illicit drugs from the community and target criminals who profit from peddling those drugs.

 

“The drugs seized by the CEP team could potentially have been sold for more than $20 million on the street – that’s $20 million dollars that won’t be boosting the profits of drug dealers and thousands of cannabis plants that won’t be sold in the community,” Det Supt Cooke said.

 

“The cultivation of cannabis is a crime and we make no apologies for targeting an illicit drug and those who knowingly break the law by growing or supplying it.

 

“All illicit drugs cause immeasurable harm in our community and we will continue to use this program and a suite of other strategies to target drug supply.

 

“I urge any person with information about the supply of prohibited drugs to contact police immediately.”

 

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[lookinggoodguys]

Would be all gps plotted from all the previous years and police helicopter just fly to known hot spots. This happens every year. However they still don't get it all and always 20 million figures of potential earnings printed in the press.

 

The NSW police would miss this fun activity and all the over-time if it was legalised.

[gippy]

I wonder how much each of those 6 arrests cost the tax payers and if a single one of us would ever consider it money well spent? Personally I doubt it.

[grow for me]

I wonder how much each of those 6 arrests cost the tax payers and if a single one of us would ever consider it money well spent? Personally I doubt it.

would cost a fortune i know a few coppers and other individuals who were in on the big look out it was all over n.s.w a few weeks ago not just the places they mentioned. they have have water police involved for some unknown reason even my drug squad copper mates  didnt know why. they said it will be a good day at work though haha.

Edited March 8, 2016 by grow for me

[gippy]

would cost a fortune i know a few coppers and other individuals who were in on the big look out it was all over n.s.w a few weeks ago not just the places they mentioned. they have have water police involved for some unknown reason even my drug squad copper mates  didnt know why. they said it will be a good day at work though haha.

Officially it would be because of reasons like cannabis growers using waterways to travel or something to that effect but in reality it's a day out on the water with their mates while on the clock all justified through the war on drugs.  Pretty sweet gig really

 

I really wish they weren't given a blank cheque like that though and that each intended operation given a cost/benefit analysis before being undertaken and then audited by an independent third party afterwards to determine effectiveness.  I believe if funding remained at the same amount for the police overall the majority of these show pony operations that net a few thousand plants and a handful of people would be eliminated immediately and the funding given to needier departments for combating domestic violence, drink driving, rape, theft, etc.  You'd see lots of the dickhead adrenaline junkie pigs quit when drug raids, searching hotties all over at music festivals, etc. stops making for a better police force in general that's more focused on helping the community in their time of need instead of ruining their day/life for wanting to get high.  Couldn't have that though.  A reduction in the war on drugs tells kids drugs aren't worth enforcing because they're not that much of an issue.  You don't want to be the one to tell kids drugs aren't bad do you?