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Police Charge Eight People With Selling 'Ice Pipes' In Sydney

Police Seize Hundreds Of 'Ice Pipes' In Sydney Drug Raids
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Police have charged eight people and seized almost 350 ice pipes in Sydney drug raids.

The raids were carried out on Thursday at five shops in Haymarket and Potts Point, with detectives taking 342 ice pipes from the premises.

The glass pipes are used for smoking methylamphetamine, also known as “ice”, and their sale is banned under the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985.

Police said in most of the raided premises, the pipes were hidden in a drawer or at the back of the shop.

Police arrested workers at the shops -- 4 women and 3 men -- and charged them with selling an ice pipe. They were all granted conditional bail.

Detectives also charged a customer of one of the shops after they spotted him buying an ice pipe. He was charged with possess pipe and possess prohibited drug and will face Downing Centre Local Court on April 4.

In January, police released footage of a daytime drug bust on a shopping strip in the city's north-west, targeting a store allegedly selling methamphetamine over the counter.

The latest crackdown comes after reports late last year that the pipes were so common in Sydney they were even being sold at petrol stations.

The pipes are said to retail for about $25.

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