POLICE will launch a drug support group “as soon as possible” as they look to combat the use of crystal methamphetamine hydrochloride, or ‘ice’.
Bacchus Marsh youth services officer’s Senior Constable Jim Ross said the group would be designed to help local addicts and their families.
Police, health and youth workers and the mother of a teenage addict last week addressed a public meeting of about 200 people, an attendance which left Senior Constable Ross “overwhelmed”.
“I’ve done similar forums and normally you get about 50-60 people, tops,” he said. “I was really happy to get the message through to so many people.”
Senior Constable Ross said word of mouth, rather than concrete police statistics, indicated ice use in Bacchus Marsh was increasing.
“I haven’t seen many of the key indicators of increasing drug use, like overdoses and drug possession. But the talk around town is that quite a number of people use it. And not just with young people.”
He said the use of ‘ice’ in Ballarat and Geelong was rampant and it was “only a matter of time before Bacchus Marsh picked up a bit of it”.
“The key [of the meeting] was to provide information on early detection of ice use; early intervention is not being addressed.
“People use the drug to change something about their life. Often it’s just to fit in, but it’s the type of drug they need more and more of.”
Police would work with the community to tackle the issue.
“Ice can cause people to get very violent, smash walls,” Senior Constable Ross said.
“People need to know that the police are here to assist, not arrest. Our main agenda is to save lives; a lot of the time we don’t lay charges.”
Of the more than 150 surveys filled out last Tuesday night, 95per cent of respondents
said there was a need for a local family drug support group.
-Ben Cameron
