Government’s soft on crime message filters through
The Government’s soft on crime approach has filtered through to the Police as 84 people were visited for illicit drug
importation but not one charge was laid, National’s Justice spokesperson Mark Mitchell says.
“Police have admitted they visited 84 addresses as part of a crackdown on people importing illicit drugs via the dark
net.
“Police haven’t said how many of the people they visited were importing large quantities of illicit drugs to sell.
“It’s unbelievable that Police would let people give a warning to anyone who is importing illicit drugs like MDMA and
LSD. These drugs cause a huge amount of harm in our communities.
“Police say they were focussing on education and harm reduction. We agree that’s an important aspect but not when it
comes to people who are importing illicit drugs so they can deal them which some clearly were.
“Part of the operation revealed Auckland teenagers were importing drugs to sell to their peers. These are incredibly
dangerous substances which are no so potent even a small amount can kill or be diluted to supply up to 50 people.
“And this follows Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway inexplicably granting residency to a violent, gang associated,
fraudster who also imported illicit drugs.
“Illicit drugs ruin lives and cause a great deal of harm in our communities. While we need a health approach for people
with addiction, we can’t stand by and watch while the people who peddle these into our communities are coddled.
“National is the party of law and order and won’t stand by while this Government soft on crime approach allows criminals
to get away with pushing dangerous drugs into our communities.”