Drug Testing On Arrest In Worcester Sees First Success

A new initiative being introduced in police custody suites in Worcester today, which will see people arrested undergo tests for Class A drugs when they are detained, has seen an early success.

‘Drug Testing On Arrest', (DTOA), is part of the Drug Intervention Programme known as DIP and is being introduced to help organisations within the criminal justice system to identify and tackle drug-related offending. It will also offer partner agencies the opportunity to provide intervention and treatment to individuals who provide a positive test.

A man in his 30s was arrested this morning in relation to bike thefts in Worcester and was the first person to be tested as part of the scheme. He tested positive for cocaine and will now have to attend two meetings, known as required assessments, with a drugs worker. 

If he fails to attend these assessments, he will be committing an offence punishable by three months in prison and/or a fine.

From today any person over the age of 18 who is detained under the following criteria at Worcester Police Station will be requested to provide a drug test. The three categories are:

• Any burglary dwelling offence (including attempts);
• All Class A drug supply and possession offences (including attempts);
• Any IOM (Integrated Offender Management) or PPO (Prolific and Priority Offender) prisoners aged over 18 for ANY national trigger offence (including attempts). National trigger offences mainly cover theft, fraud and criminal attempts.

Detective Inspector Richard Rees said: "The new legislation is designed to tackle the problem of people who offend because of a drug habit; its aim is to get an individual into treatment rather than take action for failure to provide or attend required assessments.

"We are confident the introduction of DTOA will allow us to target users of Class A drugs and then channel them into treatment. We also believe the initiative will offer us greater intelligence about drug users - and drug supply and demand - and will also allow us to target our efforts more accurately and with a much higher degree of knowledge.

"I really hope the scheme acts as not only a deterrent to them, but also any other people in Worcester who are intent on taking drugs."

Issued: Thursday 1 November, 2012