Police dogs sniff out 30 drug-fuelled punters at Doomben Ekka race day
ITS image is of family fun in the sun, but there’s a dark underbelly to Brisbane’s Ekka public holiday.
Crime & Justice
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IT WASN’T the horses that stole the show at yesterday’s Ekka Races; instead all eyes were on the police dogs that sniffed out more than 30 drug-fuelled punters.
Eight people were detected by the dogs and searched in front of onlookers during one 30-minute period before midday.
The operation was part of an ongoing arrangement between the Queensland Police Service drug squad and Brisbane Racing Club, BRC chairman Neville Bell said.
“We know that we have to make it a fun event, but it has to be safe for everyone too,” he said.
Drug detection dogs and officers monitored checkpoints outside Brisbane’s Doomben racecourse, as more than 15,000 people poured through the gates.
One-by-one, well-dressed revellers were stopped, sniffed and searched, before being dealt with by police.
Mr Bell said cocaine and marijuana had been the drugs of choice for those who chose to do the wrong thing.
He said the races had shaken their party image in the past three years.
But it would have been hard to tell yesterday afternoon, as drunken men and women lined the streets and slept in gutters.
Others stumbled out of the gates with their shoes in hand.
“We want to influence younger people to come to the races and, hopefully, if they have a good time they will turn into racing enthusiasts,” Mr Bell said.
“We haven’t had any major issues, like substance-fuelled violence, for a few years now.”
The police operation was last night ongoing.
A police spokesman confirmed those found with drugs were either charged or issued with notices to appear.
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