Drugs in Pubs and Clubs: www.police.qld.gov.au - Queensland ...

Drugs in Pubs and Clubs:
Guide for licensees, approved
managers and staff
Produced by the Drug
and Alcohol
Coordination Unit.
For further information
contact:
Drug and Alcohol
Coordination Unit
Police Headquarters
200 Roma Street
BRISBANE QLD 4000
T: 07 3364 4601
F: 07 3364 6931
This information sheet has been designed to raise awareness of you and your staff in relation to
the issue of drugs in pubs and clubs, and some information to help tackle the problem. It outlines
the ‘tell tale’ signs of drug misuse and what to be aware of when dealing with people under the
influence of certain illegal drugs.
You may be unaware of drug use in your premises; however, it is a fact that drug misuse can take place
anywhere, and even the best run pubs and clubs are not immune to this problem.
If you ignore a small problem or isolated incident you run the risk of giving the impression you are willing to
turn a blind eye to it and the problem can quickly escalate. Early intervention is one of the best ways of
preventing a small isolated incident becoming a regular occurrence.
How can drug use in your premises be prevented?
High standards of service and cleanliness are a powerful deterrent to drugs in your venue, as this shows
that you care about your premises and want to promote a safe, social, drug free environment.
Low standards indicates a ‘don’t care management style’. Dealers will often look for poorly kept venues
because if it is not being looked after then it is most likely that it’s also not being monitored. Dealers will
not take any unnecessary risks, so high profile management, staff and security will make them
uncomfortable.
How do drugs affect people?
Different drugs have different effects on people; these are outlined in more detail in this leaflet however
signs and symptoms can include:
Physical signs:
www.police.qld.gov.au
Last updated 2 August 2012
• Dilated or constricted pupils
• Excessive sniffing, dripping nose, watering or red eyes
• Sudden cold symptoms following a visit to the toilet/garden/car park
• White traces of powder round the nose
Mannerisms:
• Dilated or constricted pupils
• Excessive sniffing, dripping nose, watering or red eyes
• Sudden cold symptoms following a visit to the toilet/garden/car park
• White traces of powder round the nose
Effective monitoring as a preventative
Frequent glass collections and wiping tables clean provides a good excuse for ‘surveillance’.
• Combine monitoring with sociability, get to know your customers and make sure that they know you.
• Use of CCTV about your premises can provide an effective deterrent especially if it can be seen to be
monitored by staff.
• Have staff regularly check toilets or other out of the way areas.
• Ensure that staff informs management immediately, but discreetly, if they see or hear anything
suspicious.
• Avoid flat surfaces in toilet cubicles, and coat with an oily substance such as baby oil to deter use.
• Remember the smoke free legislation has made outside areas such as beer gardens and smoking
areas more popular, so be aware of this and carry out regular checks.
FOR EXTERNAL DISTRIBUTION

Your bar staff and security staff are the eyes and
ears when you are not around, so they need to be
alert too. They also need to know what is expected
of them in relation to potential drug misuse and
dealing on your premises.
What do I look for?
• Torn up beer mats/cigarette packets/bits of cardboard
left on ashtrays.
• Roaches (home made filter tips from cannabis
cigarettes).
• Small packets made of folded paper, card or foil.
• Empty sweet wrappings left in the toilets.
• Payment with notes that have been tightly rolled.
• Traces of blood or powder on bank notes.
• Traces of powder on smooth surfaces, particularly in
toilets.
• Very clean surfaces in toilets.
• Syringes.
• Spoons or burned tinfoil in toilets.
How do I spot a dealer?
• A person that stays a while and has a lot of friends that
only stay for short periods.
• A person making frequent trips to the toilet, garden or
car park followed by different people at the same time.
• People exchanging small packages or cash often in a
secretive manner, but may be quite open to avoid
suspicion.
• A person seeming to hide in corners talking very quietly.
• Conversations including frequent references to drugs,
especially slang terms.
• Remember, dealers are not identifiable by appearance,
and often look highly respectable.
Working together
Although you and your staff are responsible for the day to day
running of your premises, the police are able to offer advice
on preventative measures and support in dealing with this
problem. Encourage your staff to report all incidents of drug
misuse in your premises, including any suspicions they may
have regarding drug misuse.
Don’t be tempted to ignore a small problem or an isolated
incident, failure to take decisive action may encourage further
drug activity and highlight your premises as a soft target.
Involvement in a local ‘Liquor Accord’ scheme is an ideal way
of promoting a joint, zero tolerance approach to drug misuse.
Your Liquor Accord meetings enable information on drug
misuse to be shared amongst local venues and assist you to
build up a picture of what is happening in your area.
Liquor Accords
Liquor accords promote a co-operative approach to
developing safe and well managed environments in and
around licensed premises. They support harm minimisation
and responsible serving principles and operate as a
component of an overall strategy to ensure safety in the local
community and promote effective communication and problem
solving between licensees and key stakeholders.
Each liquor accord is formulated by its members to resolve
local issues within a local area. Strategies are shared and
adapted to address similar issues within different
communities.
Liquor accords include representatives from licensed
premises, businesses, councils, police, government
departments and other community organisations. The
geographical area covered by an accord is usually determined
by its members, taking into consideration police divisional and
district boundaries, local government areas and any unique
environmental factors, such as stadiums and entertainment
precincts.
For more information on liquor accords, or to find out if there
is a local liquor accord in your area, go to the Queensland
Government Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation website
www.olgr.qld.gov.au.
It is important to remember that drug related
activities are illegal. They can affect your trade by
deterring other customers and drug dealing can
increase the potential for other criminal activity,
such as intimidation, violence and damage. You
also run the risk of losing your licence.
Remember!
Remember that you have a legal obligation to provide a safe
environment for patrons and staff. This applies not only to
your premises but also to the surrounding neighbourhood.
Effectively addressing drug issues in your venue plays an
important party in you meeting this obligation.
Grateful acknowledgement is made to Burnley Borough Council, United
Kingdom for permission to reproduce copyright material from its Drugs in
pubs and clubs brochure.
Last updated 2 August 2012
FOR EXTERNAL DISTRIBUTION

.
Name What does it look like? How is it used? What to look for Dangers
Cocaine
Coke, Charlie, C,
Snow, Dust, Posh
Stimulant
White powder which is
grainy and can sometimes
be shiny
Most commonly ‘snorted’. It can also
be injected. Some people rub it into
the gums, where it is absorbed into the
bloodstream. Others add it to a drink
or food. Freebase and crack cocaine
are usually smoked.
• Traces of powder on smooth
surfaces used to cut and snort the
cocaine. Customers making
frequent visits to the toilets.
Payment with tightly rolled bank
notes.
• Runny nose, sniffing, dilated
pupils, excessive sweating,
increased confidence, energy and
feelings of invincibility.
• Cocaine numbs pain and so
someone under its influence who
behaves in an aggressive manner
may continue to fight, despite
having been restrained or injured.
• In higher doses, or when missed
with alcohol, cocaine can cause
unpredictable violent/aggressive
behaviour, paranoia, anxiety,
agitation and panic.
Ecstasy
E, XTC, Ecy, Te
love drug, Pills,
MDMA
Stimulant
Ecstasy usually comes in
the form of a tablet, in
various shapes, sizes and
colours. Often, the tablets
are imprinted with logos
and designs from popular
culture.
The most common way to take
ecstasy is by swallowing.
• People with lollipops or dummies
to counteract the jaw clenching
and teeth grinding associated with
ecstasy use.
• Dilated or enlarged pupils,
excessive sweating.
• Feelings of wellbeing, closeness
to others, empathy, high levels of
continuous energy without feeling
tired.
• Ecstasy induces a rise in body
temperature; users are at risk of
extreme dehydration, heatstroke
or hyperthermia (overheating),
especially when dancing.
• Ecstasy pills may contain a huge
range and quantity of substances
including anaesthetic drugs,
amphetamines (speed), so effects
can be unpredictable
Cannabis
Marijuana, Dope,
Hash, Grass, Pot,
Weed, Splif, Joint,
Yarndi, Skunk
Depressant
Marijuana is the dried
leaves and flowers of the
plant.
Marijuana is generally smoked in
hand-rolled joints, or in a pipe (a bong
or cone).
• Distinctive smell, aromatic, sweet
and slightly sickly.
• Torn cigarette packets or beer
mats used to make filters.
• Reddened/bloodshot eyes,
relaxation, sleepiness and
reduced coordination,
spontaneous laughter, loss of
inhibition.
• Cannabis use can worsen
symptoms associated with
psychotic illnesses such as
schizophrenia.
• Cannabis use, particularly with
alcohol, can cause a condition
known as drug-induced psychosis.
Disorientation, memory problems
and visual hallucinations are some
of the symptoms.
Amphetamines
Speed, Fast, Up,
Uppers, Louee,
Goey, Whiz, Super
coke, Bass
Stimulant
Amphetamines can come in
the form of a powder,
tablets, capsules or crystals
in a range of colours
ranging from clear/white
through to brown,
sometimes even orange
and dark purple.
Amphetamines are generally
swallowed, injected or smoked. They
are also snorted.
• Traces of powder on smooth
surfaces. Customers making
frequent visits to the toilets.
Payment with tightly rolled bank
notes.
• Amphetamine packages of ‘foils’,
plastic bags or small balloons.
• Runny nose, sniffing, dilated
pupils, excessive sweating,
increased talkativeness, non-stop
movement, jiggling about,
repetitive movement,
nervousness, anxiety, agitation.
• Addiction can occur very quickly in
people who use the drug often.
• High doses and frequent heavy
use can create an ‘amphetamine
psychosis’ characterised by
paranoid delusions, hallucinations
and bizarre, aggressive or violent
behaviour.
• Amphetamine abuse may increase
the risk of heart attacks, through
increasing heart rate and blood
pressure. It can also cause artery
spasms and lessens the flow of
blood to the heart.
Heroin
Smack, Skag,
Dope, H, Junk,
Hammer, Gear,
Harry, Slow, China
white, Dragon
Depressant
Heroin can range from a
fine white powder to offwhite
granules or pieces of
brown ‘rock’. Generally
packaged in ‘foils’ or small,
coloured balloons.
Heroin is most commonly injected into
a vein. It is also smoked (‘chasing the
dragon’) or added to cannabis or
tobacco cigarettes, or snorted.
• Syringes and heroin packages of
‘foils’ or small balloons.
• Constricted pupils, drowsiness,
slurred, slow speech, reduced
coordination, slow breathing rat,
decreased heart rate and blood
pressure.
• Users often go ‘on the nod’ an
alternative wakeful and drowsy
state.
• Syringes used to inject can spread
diseases such as hepatitis B,
hepatitis C and HIV. Extreme care
should be taken when handling
syringes.
• Mixing heroin with other
depressant drugs (such as
alcohol) increases the depressive
effects and can result in an
increased risk of respiratory
depression, coma and death.
Ketamine
Special K, K, Ket,
Kitkat, Super K
Depressant
When sold illegally,
ketamine is usually a white
crystalline powder. It can
also be made into tablets
and pills, or dissolved in a
liquid
Ketamine can be swallowed, snorted
or injected. It is also sometimes
smoked with other substances such as
cannabis or tobacco.
• Constricted/small pupils,
drowsiness, inability to move,
temporary paralysis, semiconsciousness,
lack of
coordination.
• Hallucinations and distorted
perception including visual,
auditory, physical, time, space.
• Anxiety, agitation, paranoia,
feelings of panic.
• Because ketamine is a
dissociative it can cause the user
to lose control of their body and
perform actions that they are
unaware of. They can fall over,
get up and walk around, fall into
water.
• At high doses, ketamine is a
depressant and can dangerously
reduce a person’s heart rate and
respiratory function, particularly if
mixed with other depressant drugs
(such as alcohol).
For further information on these and other drugs and their effects go to the Australian Drug Foundation DrugInfo website, www.druginfo.adf.org.au.
Last updated 2 August 2012
FOR EXTERNAL DISTRIBUTION