Police target herbal cannabis

LARNE police are clamping down on the supply of herbal cannabis in a bid to stop people turning to harder drugs.

At the latest meeting of the District Policing Partnership, it was revealed that police have had some success over the past year in tackling the number of gangs supplying drugs in the borough. The PSNI’s end-of-year crime report showed that the Larne drug squad had managed to dismantle seven gangs over the past 12 months and disrupt the activity of 25 others.

Larne mayor Andy Wilson said the figures were “very positive and encouraging”, but added: “Quite a few of these busts relate to people who supply herbal cannabis. Are police really tackling the drug problem by going after these people - should you not be targeting those who are pushing harder drugs?”

However, Larne’s PSNI area commander, Ryan Henderson, said he “made no apologies” for targeting people who supply herbal cannabis. He added: “We are not taking the easy route by targeting those involved in the supply of herbal cannabis. It is a gateway drug into harder substances and it is also on the increase, so I make no apologies for trying to reduce the supply of herbal cannabis in Larne.

“It also poses a real danger, as I have seen a number of incidents where fires have broken out as a result of cannabis factories.”

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