Police boss moves to reassure residents
The head of the southern police district wants to reassure Southland that, despite several recent high-profile incidents, police are there to support residents.
Southern District Commander Superintendent Paul Basham, in a statement, said the incidents could be unsettling.
‘‘I know how worrying this can be for our community, but it is important to reassure people that police are well placed to respond and deal with these situations,’’ he said.
Police across Southland provide aroundthe-clock coverage, with police officers available to respond to calls for service 24/7.
The Southland area was well resourced and capable of allocating appropriate resources as events arose, Basham said.
The flexibility of staff in the district allowed police to respond with the necessary skills and expertise, no matter the nature of the event, he said.
Southland, like the rest of the country, has challenges related to organised crime and drugs, Basham said.
Southland police staff were committed to reducing the harm this offending caused, and to investigating complaints in a robust and effective manner, he said.
‘‘We are actively targeting the problem of methamphetamine by a whole-of-policing approach, including proactive and targeted enforcement led on a district level by our organised crime team,’’ Basham said.
Police remained committed to arresting and charging people in Southland involved in methamphetamine use and dealing, he said. ‘‘Intelligence is collated locally and nationally which aims to reduce drugrelated crime.’’
Any form of drug use has a detrimental impact on the individual, their family and the wider community, he said. It could drive many aspects of reported and unreported crime – for example, family harm, dishonesty crime and serious assaults.
‘‘We also look at other opportunities to help our community, such as referrals to the relevant agencies to get people help with drug addiction.’’