Police have blitzed seven Illawarra homes, seizing guns, drugs and cash and arresting six people, as part of a wide-ranging investigation aimed at landing a lasting blow to the illicit drug trade in regional NSW.
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The Thursday morning raids involved 100 detectives, riot squad officers, dog handlers and general duties police.
They swooped on properties on Nicolle Road, Primbee; Gallipoli Street, Port Kembla; Beaton Street, Lake Illawarra; Brunderee Road, Flinders; Yarle Crescent, Flinders; Pioneer Drive, Flinders, and an unknown address at Unanderra.
Detective acting superintendent Andrew Koutsoufis, relieving commander at Lake Illawarra Police District, said the raids were the culmination of an investigation by the Strike Force Hulbert, which began in June last year after Illawarra police received information from their central west counterparts.
“This has been an ongoing, significant, coordinated investigation into drug supply throughout NSW,” Supt Koutsoufis said. “It’s a meticulously planned investigation. It involves a number of investigative techniques and specialist skills and it results in what’s happened here today. [It’s] gone off very, very well today. A great result.”
“I’d like to think it will [hinder the local drug trade] and the message is clear: you involve yourself in drug supply, we’re going to come after you hard.”
The raids began 8.40am; by lunchtime police had seized two firearms, a large quantity of cash, more than 100kg of cannabis, 168g of methylamphetamine, 75 grams of MDMA and 83g of cocaine.
The six men arrested are aged between 23 and 53. They were expected to be charged at Lake Illawarra Police station late Thursday.
Supt Koutsoufis said police would allege the men were involved in large-scale drug supply.
The blitz is understood to have ensnared at least one alleged high-level supplier.
“We’re alleging everything from high-level suppliers to drug mules,” Supt Koutsoufis said. “It’s a fantastic result for police and our organisation. Drugs is a scourge throughout regional NSW and throughout Australia really so any type of successful investigation of this nature is very much welcome, not only by us as an organisation but, should be, by the community as a whole.”
The men will likely appear before Wollongong Local Court on Friday.