Two men have been arrested in Rotorua after allegedly using the social media platform Facebook to sell drugs; operating under false names.
The investigation into the online sales on a group trading forum culminated in the execution of a search warrant at an address in the Hillcrest area of Rotorua yesterday.
A significantamount of cannabis and cash was recovered from the address and two men aged 24 and 29 have each been charged with selling cannabis and possession of cannabis for supply.
They will appear at Rotorua District Court next week.
Detective Sergeant Tony Colby said: "We often have concerns raised by members of the community about suspicious trading of drugs and property on social media. We hope that these arrests demonstrate that we hear these concerns and are committed to finding opportunities to prosecute where we can establish a crime has been committed.
"We also encourage the community to use their own influence on social media forums to discourage this sort of behaviour and use the reporting mechanisms provided by Facebook to report individuals who breach the site's Community Standards. We ask administrators of group forums to take equal responsibility by blocking and reporting criminal activity."
If you have information about drugs cultivation, manufacture or supply ring your local Police Station. Alternatively information can be provided anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
