NSW cannabis dealers: suburbs with the most cannabis charges
Regional towns are among the most prominent markets for NSW cannabis dealers, with one beachside suburb on the state’s Central Coast recording an eye-watering number of charges laid for cannabis dealing. SEE WHICH SUBURBS HAVE THE MOST CHARGES.
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New data has confirmed cannabis dealers are running amok in NSW’s regional towns, with one Central Coast town recording more than four times as many charges laid on weed dealers as any other NSW postcode.
Figures from the Bureau of Crime Statistics reveal where most cannabis charges were laid across NSW between March 2019 and March 2020.
Dial a dealer: Sydney’s drug hot spots exposed
Bateau Bay, Long Jetty and The Entrance on the state’s Central Coast recorded a whopping 206 cannabis charges – more than four times as many as Queanbeyan, which recorded the second-highest number with 45.
Goulburn recorded 33 cannabis charges, while Paddington, Sydney, Lismore, Mudgee, Coonabarabran, Merewether and Albury rounded out the top 10 postcodes with the most cannabis-related charges laid across NSW.
Specialist detectives from the State Crime Command’s Drug and Firearms Squad have made several arrests and seized significant quantities of cannabis in Sydney and the state’s north.
The Cannabis Eradication Program conducted across northern NSW resulted in 25 people being charged and 5818 plans worth an estimated $11.6m were seized.
Strike Force Harthouse resulted in four people being charged and $22 million worth of cannabis seized near Lismore in June.
In April, two people were charged, and nearly $2.3 million worth of cannabis seized near Port Macquarie under Strike Force Gozo.
Also in April, seven people were charged under Strike Force Emerstan and nearly $10m of cannabis was seized near Dubbo.
Under Strike Force Hyperion, detectives charged a man and seized more than $6 million worth of cannabis near Cobar.
SUBURBS WITH THE MOST CANNABIS DRUG CHARGES
1. Bateau Bay, Long Jetty, The Entrance: 206
2. Queanbeyan: 45
3. Goulburn: 33
4. Paddington, Moore Park: 24
5. Sydney: 21
6. Lismore, Nimbin: 16
7. Mudgee: 15
8. Coonabarabran: 14
9. Merewether: 13
10. Albury: 13
THE DEALERS COPS CAUGHT IN THE ACT
SUSAN WAKELING
An unemployed mother-of-four from Long Jetty was caught with almost half a kilogram of cannabis in a Coles bag after a vehicle stop.
Susan Wakeling, 38, was convicted of supplying prohibited drugs, including cannabis and methamphetamine, along with participating in a criminal group, between April and June 2019.
She was sentenced to a minimum of nine months’ jail on appeal and will be eligible for parole in September.
Police pulled Wakeling over due to her manner of driving and subsequently uncovered 1.34g of methamphetamine and 445.3g of cannabis.
TIEGAN HAYES
A low-level pot dealer from the Central Coast narrowly avoided jail after she was caught participating in a family-run drug syndicate.
Tiegan Hayes, of The Entrance, is serving a 16-month intensive corrections order after she pleaded guilty to ongoing cannabis supply in February 2020.
In telephone intercepts Hayes, 22, told her upline supplier “you can either give me a bag of weed okay and I will f**king sell it, okay and I will f**king make the money”.
JESSE HOLLOWAY
An electrician who sold illegal drugs from the underground carpark of a Sydney Aldi supermarket so he could pay off his massive mortgage has been jailed for four years.
Jesse Lindsay Holloway, 29, of Mona Vale, took orders from his drug customers via a specially coded mobile phone messaging app.
Holloway pleaded guilty to 28 drug-related charges including prohibited drug supply after police said he sourced cannabis, ecstasy powder and LSD from the dark web.
He was sentenced to an aggregate jail term of four years and will be eligible for parole in August 2021.
COUNCIL AREAS WITH THE MOST CANNABIS CHARGES LAID
1. Central Coast: 232
2. City of Sydney: 85
3. Queanbeyan Palerang: 45
4. Canterbury Bankstown: 36
5. Goulburn Mulwaree: 33
6. Newcastle: 28
7. Cumberland: 22
8. Blacktown: 21
9. Wollongong: 21
10. Fairfield: 19
11. Liverpool: 17
12. Warrambungle: 17
13. Lismore: 16
14. Mid-Western Regional: 16
15. Wagga: 15
16. Albury: 14
17. Campbelltown: 13
18. Maitland: 13
19. Byron: 11
20. Federation 11
*** Editor’s note: a previous version of this story referred to the number of “drug dealers” in a suburb. It should have referred to the number of drug charges. This has been amended. ***