Review of the Police Powers (Drug Detection Trial) Act 2003 - NSW ...

3.5.2. Possession for supply purposes
A total of seven persons were charged with supply prohibited drug offences. Four of the seven persons were found
with indictable quantities of drugs. Below is a brief description of the circumstances surrounding the supply charges
and court outcomes (where known). 117
1. A 58-year-old male driver of a station wagon was found in possession of four plastic bags containing a total
of 426 grams of cannabis. He admitted to purchasing the cannabis for his girlfriend and a mutual friend.
He also admitted that he was on his way to deliver the cannabis to his girlfriend. The man, who had no prior
convictions, pleaded guilty to supply prohibited drug and was sentenced to six months goal, which was
suspended on the condition that he be of good behaviour during that period. 118 In addition, he was fined
$2000. It is worth noting that, before being sentenced, the man completed the MERIT 119 program, which aims
to address drug use problems. 120
2. The knapsack of a 22-year-old female passenger travelling in a sedan was found to contain 20 small
individual bags containing a total of 22.3 grams of cannabis. The woman told police that she was a first
year apprentice and that she had just started selling cannabis for extra cash. The woman, who had no prior
convictions, pleaded guilty and received a section 9 bond to be of good behaviour for two years. In addition,
she was fined $1000. 121
3. A 40-year-old male driver of an unregistered prime mover was found in possession of 5.4 grams of
amphetamine and some other tablets, which he stated were dexamphetamine and Chinese medicine to assist
him to stay awake. A further 5.6 grams of amphetamine was located in the cabin of the vehicle, which the man
denied any knowledge of. The man said that the 5.4 grams of ‘speed’ was for his personal use and would last
for up to a month. The man, who has no prior convictions, was charged with supply prohibited drug in relation
to the indictable amount of amphetamine (11.0 grams total). Police sent the other tablets to be analysed to
determine if they contained any prohibited drugs. At the time of finalising this report, the supply charge had
not been determined at court. 122
4. A 28-year-old male, who was a passenger in a hatch back with friends travelling to Canberra to attend the
Summernats festival, was found in possession of 3.1 grams of cocaine, 12.7 grams of cannabis, and 20
ecstasy tablets weighing a total of 1.0 gram. The man, who had no prior convictions, pleaded guilty to two
counts of possess prohibited drug (in relation to the cannabis and cocaine) and received fines of $200 and
$500 respectively. In relation to the supply ecstasy charge, 123 the man pleaded guilty and was sentenced
to four months imprisonment. An appeal on the severity of this sentenced has been lodged. At the time of
finalising this report, the appeal had not been determined. 124
5. A 25-year-old male driver of a goods van was found in possession of a number of resealable plastic
bags containing: 40 ecstasy tablets with a net weight of 10.7 grams; a tablet and fragments of a drug
colloquially known as ‘nexus’ with a net weight of 1.39 grams; cocaine with a net weight of 6.74 grams; and
methylamphetamine with a net weight 2.89 grams. 125 In addition, police seized cash and a number of items
of property suspected of being stolen. The man was charged with three counts of supply prohibited drug in
relation to the indictable amounts of ecstasy, nexus, and cocaine. He was also charged with supply prohibited
drug for the methylamphetamine seized. At the time of finalising this report, the charges had not been
determined at court. 126
6. A 45-year-old male driver of a station wagon was found in possession of 9.5 grams of amphetamine and 36.0
grams of cannabis. The man also had a set of scales and a number of small resealable plastic bags. The man
stated the drugs were for his own personal use. He was charged with supply prohibited drug in relation to the
indictable amount of amphetamine, and possess prohibited drug for the cannabis. At the time of finalising this
report, the charges had not been determined at court. 127
7. A 42-year-old male passenger of the station wagon in case 6 above was found in possession of 12.5 grams
of amphetamine and 10 grams of cannabis. The man stated that the drugs were for his own personal use.
He was charged with supply prohibited drug in relation to the indictable amount of amphetamine, and
possess prohibited drug for the cannabis. At the time of finalising this report, the charges had not been
determined at court. 128
3.5.3. Persons found with amphetamine
A total of 18 persons were found in possession of amphetamine during the review period. Of these, five were
heavy vehicle drivers including one driver with an indictable amount of 11.0 grams. The remaining 13 persons were
travelling in cars as either the driver or passenger including 3 occasions where indictable quantities were seized
(9.5, 11.0 and 12.5 grams).
NSW Ombudsman
Review of the Police Powers (Drug Detection Trial) Act 2003
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