'Sorted' in 15 minutes

2:10pm Wednesday 16th April 2008

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As central Government officials meet this month to discuss the proposed reclassification of marijuana, it appears buying it on the streets of Croydon has never been easier.

The Croydon Guardian went to test how easy it was to buy drugs on our streets and got "sorted" in just 15 minutes.

The incredibly easy deal was made in Croydon town centre, during the day, close to shops, businesses and innocent bystanders seemingly unaware of what was going on around them.

After arriving in North End at 8am on Friday a reporter scoured the streets in search of illegal substances. At a loss with how to start, he asked a woman outside the town's main post office.

The only question we were asked was: "You're not the police, are you?"

Assuring her we were not, we arranged to meet to collect the drugs later. Fears about being beaten up or robbed - or both - were allayed when the woman later handed over a block of cannabis resin in exchange for £20.

When asked if she could get any other drugs the woman assured us that getting heroin, or "smack" would not be a problem.

After the deal was secured we immediately called police and gave them the full details of where and how they were bought. We also destroyed the drugs, according to instructions from police.

A spokesman said the information would be passed to detectives who would investigate.

According to Met Police figures there were 2,171 drug offences across Croydon in the past 12 months, compared to 1,372 the year before.

The number of cases are rising and it appears the borough, like many across London and the rest of the UK, has a problem with narcotics.

Urging others with information about crime to come forward Detective Superintendent Dave Palmer said: "The police rely on communities in Croydon to come forward and contact police with any information concerning all aspects of crime having been committed.

"Local safer neighbourhood teams in every area will act on information given by local people and have been successful at closing cannabis factories and arresting and convicting those responsible.

"In partnership with the local authority the police can use specific Government legislation to serve closure notices on tenants involved in drugs.

"The safer neighbourhood teams also work alongside the borough's dedicated crime squad who are responsible for arresting those involved in supplying class A drugs.

"There is no doubt that drugs are linked to crime and tackling this menace remains a firm priority for us to ensure that crime continues to be reduced in this borough."