Canberra cocaine users facing the highest prices in the country - Sydney Morning Herald

Cocaine prices in Canberra are the highest in the country. Photo: Jennifer Soo

Canberrans are paying more for cocaine than the rest of the country, according to new figures from the Australian Crime Commission.

Users within the ACT and the Northern Territory are willing to pay up to $500 for one gram of cocaine, the highest street price in the country throughout 2011-12, according to the Commission’s Illicit Drug Data Report issued on Monday.

Additionally, the Canberran price for one kilogram of the drug was recorded as at least $50,000 more expensive than in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia at $300,000.

Australia’s robust economy and its citizens’ high disposable income could be responsible for the hefty street prices, the Commission’s chief executive officer John Lawler said.

“Australian users have traditionally paid premium prices in world terms for illicit drugs, making importation highly profitable,” he said.

Mr Lawler said the report outlined the highest rate of drug seizures and arrests across the nation in the past decade, at more than 76,000 and 93,000 respectively.

More to come..