National Police operation targets drug dealing houses

A two month long nationwide crackdown by Police on drug dealing houses has led to the arrest of 311 people.

Operation Localise has been a nationally coordinated operation across all 12 Police districts which targeted drug dealing houses, particularly those selling cannabis or "tinnie houses".

301 search warrants have been executed, leading to 311 arrests, 32.2kg of cannabis being recovered and 139g of methamphetamine. Cannabis was found growing at 44 locations, with 2657 plants and seedlings seized. $111,154 in cash was also recovered. 19 firearms were also seized along with ammunition.

A wide range of charges have been laid by each Police district including conspiracy to supply class A, B and C drugs, possession for supply, selling class C drugs, attempting to procure cannabis, conspiracy to sell cannabis, cultivation of cannabis, possession of utensils, receiving stolen property and manufacturing methamphetamine. Other charges include participating in an organised criminal group, unlawful possession of a firearm, burglary, and threat to kill.

"This was a sustained programme of enforcement to combat drugs and disrupt organised crime groups" said Assistant Commissioner Malcolm Burgess.

"Tinnie houses are hubs for criminal offending. The people who run them are often not only dealing cannabis, but also methamphetamine. They invariably receive stolen property, take payments for drugs and are involved in organised crime groups.

"Such houses cause misery in communities and we are sending a clear message that they won't be tolerated.

"We will continue to protect our communities from the harm caused by drug dealers and stamp out the anti-social behaviour they create.

"Some of those arrested will also find themselves subject to new civil forfeiture legislation. 47 assessments under this legislation are now underway as a result of the operation. The onus of proof is now on the offender and they will have to prove assetts are not the proceeds of criminal activity.

"Operation Localise has involved some excellent work in all the Police districts with coordination at a national level and I'm confident it has caused significant disruption to drug dealing in our communities.

"However drug dealers shouldn't think our work here is done - they will continue to find themselves the subject of close Police attention.

"We always need the help of the public to do this and I'd urge anyone who suspects a property is being used for drug dealing to talk to their local police. Alternatively they can report their concerns anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 ." said Mr Burgess.

Editor's note: Some police districts have already issued details of their operations. The below district breakdowns are final totals for all districts and may differ slightly from earlier figures.
 

	Warrants	Arrests	Cannabis	Methamphetamine	Firearms
Northland	12	15	246g	6.6g	1
Waitemata	24	23	529g	0.9g	1
Counties M.	38	38	1057g	50.1g	3
Auckland C.	26	60	13431g	36.1g	0
Waikato	16	10	1236g	9g	0
Bay of Plenty	40	27	239g	12.6g	0
Eastern	15	16	419g	0g	0
Central	52	48	9520g	7.5g	6
Wellington	16	20	412g	16.2g	3
Tasman	41	35	4363g	0g	5
Canterbury	13	11	292g	0g	0
Southern	8	8	450g	0g	0