THE battle against the ice scourge in Wagga will be boosted by an additional five police officers being allocated to the local area command.
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The extra manpower was announced by Minister for Police Troy Grant outside the Wagga police station on Tuesday after he and Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione met with rank and file police.
The extra staff will take to 10 the number of additional police allocated to Wagga this year and to 30 the number of extra police in the command compared to four years ago. Five probationary constables came to Wagga earlier this year.
“My job is to look after the police and give them the resources they need so they can look after you,” Mr Grant said.
The 10 new police is well short of the 32 sought by the Police Association, but Mr Grant indicated any more officers beyond the extra 10 will not be forthcoming in the immediate future.
“We don’t have a bucket of unused police sitting there,” Mr Grant said.
The Police Association southern region executive member, Mick Connor, said he accepted 32 was a bit beyond what the government and the police force could deliver now.
“Look, 10 is a good result,” Mr Connor said. “These numbers go a long way to addressing police safety and safety of the community.”
Mr Scipione described the 10 police as a “significant increase in strength” that would make a significant difference to policing in the city.
How the extra police are allocated will be up to local area commander, Superintendent Bob Noble, but Mr Scipione all but ruled out a specialist drug squad for Wagga.
Days after hundreds of people attended a community ice forum in Wagga, Mr Grant said he did not think there was a more corrosive drug than ice.
Mr Scipione said reports of children being used as concierges by drug-dealing parents in Wagga was almost distressing. “We need to be protecting our kids and not put them in situations where they are confronted with this type of crime,” he said.
“You can imagine what sort of message that sends to children in terms of its OK to take drugs; well, it’s not OK.”
The police commissioner said there had been talks with Mr Grant about ice dealing, particularly in rural NSW. “This is one area where we are committed to going as far as we can and need to, so you will see some significant impact in that area pretty soon,” he said.
Mr Grant rejected a second police station for Wagga.
“From my observations and knowledge of police, the resources behind us are adequate to house the operations of police across the command,” he said.
