Police have charged a further four men as part of a cross-border operation targeting drug supply on the Far North Coast.
Strike Force Cuppa was formed in August last year to investigate the supply of prohibited drugs and consorting involving members of an alleged criminal syndicate within the township of Nimbin.
The strike force, comprising detectives from Richmond Local Area Command – and assisted by officers from Northern Region Operations Support Group (OSG) – executed six search warrants within the townships of Nimbin and Lismore last month.
Police seized an estimated 5kg of cannabis, MDMA Tablets, methyl amphetamine (ICE), two firearms, and a range of prohibited weapons including an electronic stun gun, defensive spray and a slingshot.
They also recovered property alleged to have been stolen, including power tools and a large generator. Police also seized $55,000 cash that is alleged to be the proceeds of crime.
Eleven men, aged between 21 and 35, were charged with a range of offences including consorting, supply prohibited drug, knowingly take part in supply of a prohibited drug, proceeds of crime and participate in a criminal group, among other charges.
All were bail refused and appeared before Lismore Local Court on Wednesday 29 June 2016.
On Monday, two Nimbin men, aged 21 and 27, attended Lismore Police Station where they were arrested.
On Tuesday, two Gold Coast men, aged 25 and 26, attended Lismore Police Station where they were also arrested.
All four men were charged with consorting, participate in criminal group, and supply prohibited drugs.
Sounds like a massive beat up to me, just the sort of conspiracy theory our govts love to manufacture as part of their ludicrous and highly destructive war on drug users.
the police system is pathetic. why don’t they go after real criminals.
pot will be completely legal soon. then police and pharmaceuticals will lose $$$
can’t happen soon enough.
noah
Nimbin is a theatre. My ancestors turn in their graves over what it has become. It THRIVES on PROHIBITION. When the sun goes down and the tourist buses return to Byron for the evening, the locals show their true colours and the ugliness of violence dominates. It is a myth that Nimbin is funded by centrelink. The town (both businesses and dealers) make millions, possibly billions, each year from the tourist dollar. Touted across the world as “the cannabis capital of Australia,” the town lives a very exclusive lifestyle compared to elsewhere in the country … and people believe Nimbinites to be against prohibition? Ha! Go to a medical cannabis forum there …. discussion doesnt move much past what it was twenty years ago. A stagnent cesspool of lazy washed up virtual hippies. Legalise the weed and Nimbin wont be so exclusive anymore. Noone will need to visit it for their pot anymore … not the tourists or out of towners, nor the medical cannabis patients. Nimbin and it’s violent underbelly are deliberately sabotaging the anti-prohibition movement with their multi-millionaire drug gang boys. The locals are lying about the rainbows and magic for tourist profit. Dont believe the farce. Peace to all who truely want to free the weed.