Intensified checks after €6,000 fines for laughing gas

Famagusta police on Wednesday said they will intensify checks to tackle the use of laughing gas, a day after the district court issued €6,000 fines for five cases of illegal possession of the class B controlled drug.

The fines, issued by the Famagusta district court on Tuesday, concerned cases that took place between June 8 and 12 at Ayia Mavris street in Ayia Napa, Famagusta police spokesman Steve Theodoulou told the Cyprus News Agency.

Officers, as part of checks to combat possession, use and supply of nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas, detected in five different cases young tourists from the UK trying to use a device to inflate balloons with nitrous oxide. They were also found in possession of a number of capsules with the colourless gas, Theodoulou said.

He added that Famagusta officers “will intensify their investigations to tackle this dangerous phenomenon for human health”, aiming to crack down on the supply and money laundering from this illegal activity.