POLICE are wrapping up their Cannabis Eradication Program for 2014/15 with an estimated $22 million seized and destroyed – with Tenterfield a repeat perpetrator.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The program is an annual drug-detection program run by the NSW Police Force Drug Squad, working closely with local police, Polair and the Communications Group.
During the key cannabis growing season, from late Spring to early Autumn, police conduct targeted aerial and ground surveillance to detect and destroy illegal cannabis crops.
Speaking outside NSW Police Headquarters in Parramatta on Monday, Commander of the State Crime Command Drug Squad Tony Cooke said nearly 12,000 plants were uncovered.
He said the program has been able to reduce supply in towns like Tenterfield.
“It is also an invaluable tool for ongoing investigations into cannabis cultivation by the Drug Squad and local area commands across the state,” Det Supt Cooke said.
“Preventing large amounts of cannabis will have an impact on the availability of cannabis in these areas, disrupt the supply chain, and minimise the harm caused by the drug,” he said.
The annual program targeted cannabis crops in the New England, Richmond, Coffs Clarence and Tweed Byron Local Area Commands.
Of these areas, New England was the most prolific, netting a total of 4860 plants – compared with about 2500 in Richmond and Coffs/Clarence, and 1469 in Tweed/Byron.
A number of people were stopped by police and will face court on offences such as cultivate prohibited plant and possess prohibited drug.
The biggest haul was the one found in December which had an estimated street value of $10 million.
Police uncovered those crop sites in Tenterfield, Deepwater, Gibraltar Range National Park, Red Range and Dundee.
Inspector Roger Best from the New England Local Area Command said the seizure had prevented the illegal cannabis landing on our streets.
“The quantity of cannabis seized makes it clear that these plants were purely for a commercial purpose,” Inspector Best said.
Another $1.5 million was discovered at Basket Swamp National Park, north of Tenterfield, at the beginning of the 2014/15 program.
Detective Superintendent Tony Cooke, said the program will continue to be a major strategy for police to target outdoor cannabis crops.
