Hashish sale alleged

Press, 23 February 1978, Page 7

Hashish sale alleged

A Christchurch gardener sold hashish to a plainclothes policeman on two occasions last October, the Magistrate’s Court was told yesterday. Geoffrey Gerard Cox aged 22 (Mr J. Casseils), pleaded not guilty to two charges of supplying hashish, one charge of possessing cannabis, and one charge of! possessing hashish oil. After the taking of depos-| itions. Messrs M. B. Hayes I and J. J- Green, Justices of j the Peace, found a prima-i facie case established and | committed the defendant to the Supreme Court for trial. I He was allowed bail of $750) and one surety of 5750. Detective-Sergeant J. J.j Chadderton called two, policemen as witnesses and!

r produced an affidavit from a . third. > A plain-clothes policeman, , whose name was suppressed, 1 gave evidence that between 1 i September and December [last year be was on plain j[ clothes duties in Christ- [, church. fj “I visited hotels, clubs and !• addresses where it was be•jlieved that narcotics were fi being used and sold,” he jsaid. He met a person who j worked in a hair-dressing j [bar in the Square, and was: ■[taken to an address in Gar-| .[diners Road, where he was; [introduced to the defendant. ■ >• ”Cox told me he could lay; I his hands on as much hash! i[ oil as I wanted.” j On October 15. the police-! Iman purchased from Cox a[ i small bottle of the oil for! Isl2o. “He told me that if I'

i was to mix the contents with half a pound of tea, leaves, I would almost cer- [ tainly double my money,” he , said. r On October 19, the police,l man went back to the ! . address in Gardiners Road, 1 [where the defendant showed .[him some cannabis seeds ■ land toid him he intended ; ‘[planting them and hoped to ■ [ | make at least $6O from each i '[plant. Cox told the policeman he ; had some hash tea for sale. 1 ’[“! told Cox I would take as < [ i many “deals” as he could 1 '[spare. He told me there < 'would be a lot of people < '[calling and that he felt ob- 1 liged to look after these 1 [people as well.” f ! He bought four deais of s .!hash tea from Cox for $32. < I Cox told him that the hash I'tea was "really good stuff.” s

Detective B. ML McKevith gave evidence that he had communicated daily with the plain-clothes policeman, who had been under his supervision. He had received from him a small glass vial and four foil-wrapped packages. The Departinent of Scientific Industrial Research reports on the contents of the vial and the packages were submitted as evidence. Detective G. F. Stebbings stated in an affidavit that he had gone to the defendant’s Gardiners Road address on December 15. He had told Cox that he believed that Cox was involved in handling the controlled drug! hashish. Cox had told him that he had nothing whatsoever to do with controlled drugs. Mr Cassells reserved his submissions.