Good proactive work by frontline Police officers in Counties Manukau resulted in three separate drug and stolen goods hauls on Tuesday this week.
At 2:00pm, a vehicle was stopped by officers from Counties Manukau West on Atkinson Ave, Otahuhu when a man recognised by the officers as a forbidden driver and a manufacturer of drugs was seen in the passenger seat.
Over 250 grams of methamphetamine, with a street value of a quarter of a million dollars, was located in the vehicle and the two occupants were arrested. Further enquiries lead to a search of a property in Mangere, where additional drug paraphernalia and a number of cellphones were located.
The second incident occurred around 3:30pm when a suspicious vehicle without registration plates was stopped near Mobil on Wiri Station Road. A glass meth pipe was found in the car along with various branded clothing items, shoes and grocery items that the occupants admitted recently stealing. A stolen credit card with which the driver had attempted to obtain petrol was also recovered.
"It transpired that the intention of the two people was to steal petrol from the Mobil station, which is why the registration plates had been removed from the vehicle," says Detective Inspector Dave Lynch, Crime Manager at Counties Manukau CIB.
In the third incident at around 9:20pm in Manurewa, a woman was arrested for traffic infringements but upon a search of her vehicle over 30 grams of cannabis, some LSD, Contact NT and drug paraphernalia a along with a shotgun cartridge were located. The driver and her male passenger were then arrested on various drug charges.
"These three incidents highlight the great proactive work that is happening throughout the District on an ongoing basis. Staff are deployed to areas where intelligence indicates they will have an impact on the criminal environment and these results are proof of this," says Detective Inspector Lynch.
"We'd like to remind members of the public that Police are not the only ones able to identify a suspicious car or person - information about suspicious or unusual people or cars that members of the public can provide us with is invaluable.
"Call Police on 111 if you see something suspicious. As we have demonstrated in just a few hours across the District, what can be found during a routine Police check can sometimes be surprising."
ENDS
Issued by Kimberley Mathews/Communications Manager, Counties Manukau Police
021 192 0717
Note: a photo of the methamphetamine recovered in the first incident is attached.
