Operation Kidman Cruise to fight illegal drug

Melbourne (ANI): Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise may not be together but at least their names are, thanks to a Gold Coast police operation that looks into chemist robberies and the manufacturing of illegal drugs. According to a police spokeswoman, the title Operation Kidman Cruise came about purely by coincidence following the merger of two separate investigations – one called Kidman, and the other called Cruise.

The spokeswoman said that both operations, involving up to 10 detectives, were looking into the burglary of chemist shops in the police district stretching from Logan to Coolangatta. A 39-year-old man was arrested in Runaway Bay where police also found bags of chemicals, heating elements, and other items used to make drugs in an underground car park.

He appeared in Southport Magistrate's Court charged with 12 break-ins at pharmacies on the Gold Coast, and another four in Northern New South Wales. "This is a significant arrest in halting the supply of illegal drugs on to the streets. Drugs have become more of a problem on the Gold Coast in the last few years, and obviously drugs and property crime go hand in hand," The Courier Mail quoted acting Detective Sergeant Scott Ingram, as saying.

The man was also charged with four counts of bringing stolen goods into Queensland, seven fraud offences and wilful damage. The police spokeswoman said that despite the arrest, Operation Kidman Cruise was an ongoing investigation.