NINETEEN people were charged or cautioned in relation to drugs offences at this year's PlanetLove festival at Shane's Castle, Antrim Police have revealed.
The festival's 10th anniversary weekend passed off without major incident, despite being larger than previous years and police, who had liaised closely with with the organisers and key stakeholders in preparation for the concert, maintained a constan
t and visible presence throughout.
Alongside minimising disruption to the local community, officers identified drugs offences as one of their priorities and a proactive policing operation was carried out over the weekend.
This resulted in 19 people being charged or cautioned in relation to drugs offences.
Quantities of Ecstasy, speed, cannabis and cocaine were also recovered by police.
Area Commander Chief Inspector Simon Walls, commented: "Officers, working in conjunction with the organisers of the event, made 35 seizures of illegal drugs. We were able to charge or caution 19 people in relation to drugs offences and are currently dealing with a further nine arrests through means of report to the PPS and follow-up enquiries.
"Officers also worked hard to minimise disruption to the local community both in the run up to the event and during the weekend. Traffic disruption, which was identified as an area of concern last year, was kept to a minimum with new pick up and drop off arrangements put in place.
"It should be said that the vast majority of people attending the event were able to enjoy themselves safely and responsibly while officers took firm action against those intent on breaking the law and indulging in anti-social behaviour."
There were also four arrests in relation to disturbances within the event site. These were dealt with swiftly by police and three of the four arrested were later released.
A fourth person was charged with assault on police.
The full article contains 307 words and appears in Antrim Times newspaper.