Police have arrested 20 people, executed 10 Firearm Prohibition Order compliance checks and eight search warrants during a three-day deployment to Kempsey aimed at targeting regional crime and creating a safer community.
The State Crime Command's Kempsey deployment was a multi-faceted operation led by the Organised Crime Squad in a bid to target, disrupt and prevent crime in the regional township of Kempsey and surrounds.
The operation ran between Monday (18 September 2023) and Wednesday (20 September 2023) and involved the deployment of 120 detectives from all State Crime Command squads, who travelled to Kempsey to work in collaboration with officers from the Mid North Coast Police District and other specialist police commands, including Traffic & Highway Patrol and PolAir.
During the three-day operation, police laid 28 charges, completed over 900 random breath and drug tests, and seized over $40,000 cash, a number of firearms, drugs, ammunition and weapons.
As well as targeting crime, police also met with over 900 students across five schools and visited a number of local businesses, as part of a proactive approach to crime prevention and education.
Commander of the Organised Crime Squad, Detective Superintendent Peter Faux, said State Crime Command's Kempsey deployment is a great example of how the New South Wales Police force are taking a multi-faceted approach to targeting crime.
"This model – where specialist squads and teams focus on a particular area for a short space of time – has already proven largely successful this year, and our time Kempsey was no different.
"It was great to see our detectives and operatives working so collaboratively side-by-side with the Northern Region officers and other specialist officers deployed as part of the operation," Det Supt Faux said.
"Not only is model designed to lower and prevent crime in the area but having a surge of police in one place is a great opportunity for our officers to connect with different regional communities."
Commander of Mid North Coast Police District, Superintendent Shane Cribb, welcomed the Kempsey deployment and benefit of extra policing resources.
"As Commander my priority will always be the safety of the communities within the Mid North Coast Police District," Supt Cribb said.
"Having the extra resources boosted our capabilities in not only crime-fighting, but crime prevention, which we expect will have a significant and lasting impact going forward.
"Higher numbers also meant we could bolster our preventive policing capabilities – visiting five schools in just three days and getting a chance to talk over 900 students about crime prevention and safety."
