WA drug search laws raise cop safety fears

The WA Police Union says new drug search laws targeting regional roads could put officers at risk "in the middle of nowhere".

New search and seizure laws targeting methylamphetamine being distributed through Western Australia's regional road network and postage system could put police officers at risk, the union fears.

Under proposed legislation to be introduced into parliament on Thursday, a road suspected of being a drug transit route could be declared a search area for a limited time by a senior police officer, allowing any vehicle travelling through it to be searched.

WA Police Union President George Tilbury said he did not want to see "two police officers in the middle of nowhere" searching a vehicle suspected of carrying drugs - and potentially weapons - without the support of other officers nearby.


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Source: AAP



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