Here is a summary of the latest police news on the Fleurieu and Kangaroo Island.

Drug and weapon arrest KI

A man has been charged with drug offences after police searched his Kangaroo Island home last week.

About 10am Monday 17 February following an investigation, police from the Mount Barker Tactical Team searched a house at Kingscote.

It will be alleged officers located an amount of methamphetamine buried in the back yard of the property, along with prohibited weapons and an amount cannabis found inside.

A 26-year-old man from the address was arrested and charged with trafficking a controlled drug, possessing implements to administer a controlled drug, possessing a prohibited weapon and carrying an offensive weapon.

He was refused police bail and appeared in the Christies Beach Magistrates Court on Tuesday 18 February. The man was also issued with an expiation notice for possession of cannabis.

Anyone with information about the manufacture, sale of supply of illicit drugs is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online – you can remain anonymous

Missing woman Susannah Edwards found

Police advise missing Strathalbyn woman Susannah Edwards has been located.

For more information about reporting people missing, and the police procedure regarding such matters please visit the website.

Police launch operation to deter people from speeding

South Australia Police will spend the next four days targeting dangerous drivers across the state for Operation Safe Speed.

The operation, which began at 12:01am this morning, Monday 24 February, aims to reduce fatality, serious injury and casualty crashes on our roads by deterring road users from speeding.

The operation was last conducted in November 2019 and resulted in 960 detections state-wide.

Speed continues to be an ongoing issue for South Australia Police with crash data from 2019 suggesting that excessive speed was a contributing factor in 14 per cent of fatal crashes.  

Reductions in speed will save lives and minimise injuries, and police know that a reduction in the average travel speed on our roads is the most effective way to reduce road trauma.

But despite the data and repeated warnings, motorists are still making excuses for excessive speed.

Superintendent Robert Gray, Officer in Charge of the Traffic Services Branch, says the operation isn’t just about expiation notices.

“We want to catch people who are doing the wrong thing but the overall aim of this operation is to educate drivers about the dangers of speeding.

“Over the course of this operation you can expect to see a large police presence on our roads, particularly in locations with the highest traffic volumes.

“We cannot stress enough that we need the help and cooperation of the community to reduce the number of lives lost on our roads.”

Operation Safe Speed will end at midnight on Thursday 27 February 2020.

Be alert to Telstra gift card scam

Police are warning the community to be on high alert to scammers after another victim was fleeced of several thousand dollars following a gift card scam.

A Hills Fleurieu resident reported she received a call from a scammer pretending to be from Telstra who needed to fix a 'virus' on her computer. The victim was instructed to provide on-line access to the laptop including access to her internet banking.

The victim was then told to buy a number of gift cards, including Google Play Cards and provide the codes to the scammer. The scammer further instructed the victim to purchase an amount of Bitcoin.

Police wish to remind the public that telecommunications companies will not make contact with you by telephone to advise that you are suffering a security breach. And they will never expect payment of any sort in gift cards.

Scammers can sound extremely convincing, but legitimate companies will not tell you to lie to anyone, the will not create crypto currency accounts / wallets in your name and expect you to lie about it to the crypto currency provider.

Never give your bank details, or transfer money and never purchase gift cards for anyone requesting you to do so over the phone.

Remember to protect yourself - most scammers contact people by phone or on the internet, so:

• hang up when someone you don't know calls
• immediately delete emails from people you don't know, and from agencies or businesses that you didn’t agree to receive emails from – and don’t click on links in those emails
• never send money online to someone you haven't met in person.
• independently contact the government agency from a phone number or website that you have located and were not directed to before providing any money or personal details to a cold caller

For more information about how to protect yourself, please visit the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s ScamWatch website.