WA mine swoop nets sole cannabis stash

Almost 1200 WA mine workers were searched by drug detection dogs as part of an ongoing police operation, but only a single stash of cannabis was found.

A police swoop on Gina Rinehart's Roy Hill iron ore project in Western Australia's Pilbara has resulted in just one drug seizure.

Police said a drug detection dog was used to search 695 workers and their luggage as they arrived on site by bus.

The dog had six "indications", which suggested that illegal drugs may be present. But only one amount of cannabis was found after a subsequent search.

At a BHP Billiton mine, 495 workers were screened and there were seven dog indications, but no seizures.

Police said it was the third phase of Operation Redwater, which BHP Billiton had assisted with previously, while Roy Hill had become involved for the first time.

"For such operations to be successful, workers at these remote sites need to know that we may revisit the same companies as part of our ongoing series of Redwater operations," acting assistant commissioner of regional WA Police Murray Smalpage said.

"We received a lot of positive feedback from remote workers during the previous operations.

"As is the case in many industries, it is the actions of a few that place the safety of many at risk."

Police searches of Fortescue Metals Group's Christmas Creek and Cloudbreak mines in December resulted in no arrests, although one man was summonsed for possessing drugs without a prescription.

In January, police searched BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto workers arriving on site by plane, as well as at Newman Airport.


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Source: AAP


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