A police officer who pulled over a speeding motorist on his way to Orientation Week in Dunedin followed their nose and foiled an alleged drug dealer’s plans.
While the officer was issuing the driver a speeding ticket in the 100kmh zone near Warrington, they caught an unmistakable pungent aroma wafting from the vehicle.
Oamaru Sergeant Antony Woodbridge said the officer invoked the Search and Surveillance Act and had a hunt through the vehicle.
Seven grams of strong-smelling cannabis were immediately found, plus 200g of MDMA, tabs of LSD and about 150g of ketamine.
Altogether the drugs found added up to an estimated value of $70,000.
Woodbridge said it is alleged the 22-year-old male driver was on his way south to Dunedin for the Orientation Week celebrations to sell his illegal products.
But now he is facing a raft of charges related to the drugs in his possession.
“This was not just a great piece of road policing, but a good example of our staff taking initiative and action to follow their nose – quite literally, in this case,” Woodbridge said.
“The result is a lot of potential harm caused by drugs removed from our communities.”
-Allied Media