Four men arrested after major drug bust in Dunedin

Four men aged 25, 26, 29 and 45 were arrested and face a number of charges relating to the production, possession and supply of class A, B and C drugs. Photo / File

Four men have been arrested for a major drug operation worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in Dunedin.

Detective Inspector Stu Harvey, field crime manager, Southern District said the operation
was targeting the production and wholesale supply of MDMA, ketamine and eutylone.

Dunedin's Organised Crime team alongside other Dunedin groups executed a number of search warrants in the Dunedin area on Tuesday.

As a result, four men aged 25, 26, 29 and 45 were arrested and face a number of charges relating to the production, possession and supply of class A, B and C drugs.

They are due to appear in Dunedin District Court on Wednesday.

During the operation, police seized drugs valued at up to $330,000, along with a pistol and approximately $20,000 in cash, Detective Inspector Harvey said.

A large amount of the drugs supplied were being sold as MDMA (ecstasy), however some is believed to be eutylone.

Eutylone is a stimulant drug in the synthetic cathinone family and is known to be sold and taken as MDMA as it mimics the effects.

The drug has recently been linked to a number of hospital admissions throughout New Zealand.

Detective Inspector Harvey said purchasing or buying synthetic cathinones (as a pill, capsule or powder) greatly increases the chances of accidental overdose.

"This is because synthetic cathinones are active in lower doses, for some this can be as low as 10mg which is a tenth of MDMA. If someone takes synthetic cathinones in an
MDMA-sized dose, it can have fatal consequences.

"These arrests and the seizure of drugs from this operation will have a
significant effect on supply in Dunedin and will reduce harm."