Police seize commercial quantity of prohibited drugs
Police have seized prohibited drugs with an estimated street value of $1.5 million in raids on the Peninsula.
Search warrants across the Peninsula as part of Strike Force Bamberry have resulted in the arrest of three Umina men and a Woy Woy woman, as well as the drug seizure.
Strike Force Bamberry, comprising officers from Brisbane Water Local Area Command, was established in December 2015 to investigate the manufacture and distribution of prohibited drugs on the Central Coast.
After ongoing investigations, Strike Force detectives arrested two 20-year-old men on Wednesday afternoon, May 25.
One of the men, from Umina, was charged with eight offences including supply large commercial quantity of prohibited drug and participating in a criminal group.
The second 20-year-old man, also from Umina, was charged with a total of 19 offences including supply large commercial quantity of prohibited drug, supply indictable quantity of a prohibited drug and knowingly participate in a criminal group.
The two with a third man from Sydney's St Clair who was arrested at Kariong, were all refused bail to appear before Gosford Local Court on Thursday, May 26.
Following the arrests, police executed 11 search warrants for properties at Umina, Woy Woy, Horsfield Bay and Ettalong as well as a number of Sydney properties.
The operation involved Brisbane Water Police with assistance from the Tactical Operations Unit, Public Order and Riot Squad, Operations Support Group, Dog Unit and PolAir.
While executing the warrants, police located and seized amounts of MDMA, MDA, GHB, cocaine, cannabis, methylamphetamine ('ice') and steroids with a combined estimated potential street value of more than $1.5 million.
A number of further items were seized from the properties, including two vehicles and an extendable baton, which will undergo forensic examination, as well as $125,000 in cash, believed to be the proceeds of crime.
Strike Force detectives also identified a storage unit in Waterloo during the operation where they executed another search warrant and uncovered more than 1.5 tons of precursor chemicals believed to be used in the large-scale manufacture of prohibited drugs.
A fourth man, and a woman, were arrested during the operation.
A 21-year-old Umina man was charged with a total of 18 offences including supply commercial quantity of prohibited drug, supply large commercial quantity of prohibited drug, supply indictable quantity of prohibited drug, and knowingly participate in a criminal group.
He was refused bail and faced Hornsby Local Court on Thursday, May 26.
The 34-year-old woman, of Woy Woy, was charged with five offences of supplying an indictable quantity of prohibited drug.
She was granted conditional bail to appear before Gosford Local Court on Tuesday, June 21.
Brisbane Water Local Area Commander, Superintendent Danny Sullivan, said the operation was the culmination of several months of investigations.
"Strike Force Bamberry detectives have been working incredibly hard for six months, all of which has culminated in yesterday's search warrants and numerous arrests," Supt Sullivan said.
"It's clear that those arrested during the operation were members of an elaborate syndicate that had been operating across the Peninsula for some time.
"I can assure the community that we will continue to hunt down those who seek to manufacture and distribute these substances within our neighbourhoods," Supt Sullivan said.
"These drugs can destroy lives - they're not only illegal - but they can also be very harmful to your health, if not fatal.
"I'd also like to remind members of the public they should never underestimate the immensely positive impact one anonymous call to Crime Stoppers can make," Supt Sullivan said.
"If you see something you're concerned about, I urge you to come forward, only then can police take action to make it stop."
Strike Force detectives are continuing their investigations.
Media release, 26 May 2016
Danny Sullivan, NSW Police