POLICE OFFICER'S PLEA FOR HELP ATTRACTS UNWANTED ATTENTION

A Rotorua police officer is staggered her call for locals to help
catch drug dealers has resulted in a personal attack.

Detective Karin Isaacson's plea in the Daily Post for information
about drug growers and other criminals has proved successful, with
tip-offs already leading to arrests - but it also created some
unwanted attention. Ms Isaacson appeared in the newspaper in January
after police sent out 3000 flyers to rural areas around Rotorua
asking residents for information about drug growers and other crime.

The flyers, sent to areas including Kaharoa, Reporoa, Rerewhakaaitu,
Waikite Valley and Mamaku, asked residents to ring her if they had
any information to pass on.

The Daily Post article was then reprinted in the New Zealand Herald
and was posted on a website, www.norml.org, that promotes the
legalisation of cannabis. That resulted in people posting online
comments, including some which criticised Ms Isaacson. One of the
comments, which used several expletives, prompted other bloggers to
tell the writer to "calm down".

Other comments called her misguided and wondered whether her senior
had sent her out to "terrorise the cannabis community".

Ms Isaacson said the police's proactive stance was also surprisingly
joked about on ZM radio with host Iain Stables making derogatory comments.

She said all police areas had staff who were concentrating on drug
growers as well as other drug-related crime and she was surprised the
article and fliers created such a stir. "I know for a fact they are
doing this sort of thing in other areas of the country but for some
reason this grabbed the attention of the nation."

She said the fliers had proved successful with information leading to
some arrests and more information was yet to be acted on. "Our focus
was targeting the organised criminal groups and higher level dealers."

Meanwhile, this summer's dry conditions is not only plaguing farmers
in the region, it will also be taking its toll on cannabis growth.
"They [the growers] will have to put a lot more effort in to tending
to their crops."

She reiterated her plea for the public to pass on information, which
could be given anonymously by ringing (0800) TIPOFF.