The Commonwealth-funded campaign is currently taking place within States and Territories across Australia.

In NSW, the campaign is being held in 21 metropolitan and regional LACs, including the Bellingen Shire, over a six-month period between March and September 2016.

It will run in each LAC for two weeks, during which local residents will be urged to help police shut down drug-manufacturing syndicates and arrest drug suppliers by reporting relevant information to Crime Stoppers.

Since the launch of the Mid North Coast LAC campaign last Monday (July 18), local officers have been out in the community distributing information and educating the public on how they can support the campaign.

Mid North Coast Local Area Commander, Acting Superintendent Steve Clarke, urged the community to get behind ‘Dob in a Dealer’ as the campaign continues this week.

“If you see our officers out and about in the community this week, stop and have a chat with them and find out how you can show your support for this important campaign,” A/Supt Clarke said.

“We are focused on targeting the manufacturers and suppliers of ‘ice’ so we can eradicate the issue at the source and stop the spread of drugs before they make it to the streets.

“That’s why I’m urging everyone in the community to familiarise themselves with the seven signs of a drug house,” A/Supt Clarke said.

“These include strange odours, diverted electricity, chemical containers and waste, blacked-out windows, hoses and pipes in strange places, extremely bright indoor lighting and vehicles arriving at odd hours.

“These filthy run-down properties are producing illegal drugs that not only cause severe harm to users, but they are highly-combustible and often pollutant-riddled, which poses an even more direct threat to the community around them,” A/Supt Clarke said.

“If any homes in your neighbourhood raise suspicions, please come forward. Your call could be the key to shutting down a drug house and making our community a safer place to live.”

Crime Stoppers NSW CEO, Peter Price, said drugs can have devastating consequences for the whole community, and putting a stop to the flow of drugs requires a whole-of-community response.

“Local residents often hold the key to information that can help reduce crime, and we are asking people who live within Mid North Coast LAC to play an active role and report those people that are bringing harmful drugs into the area,” Mr Price said.

“If you have already reported something to Crime Stoppers, we thank you; if you have not and know something, we ask that you let us know immediately.

“By making that one anonymous phone call or online report, you could save not only your community from drugs, but also someone’s life,” Mr Price said.