Police believe three 23-year-olds from the northern beaches are behind the spread of one of the blue batman pills.
They appeared to be three normal northern beaches mates who liked to ski together and party hard, but police believe the trio are behind the spread of one of the most potent and potentially deadly batches of ecstasy pills the state has seen.
A warning was issued in August after police detected a batch of blue pills stamped with a Batman logo and spiked with the deadly 25c-NBOMe, a synthetic LSD-like substance linked to the deaths of several young people and overdoses of five Hawkesbury teens.
The pills had turned up in the southern region of NSW, on the state's ski fields and at a party in the Hawkesbury, where several users had bad reactions, prompting police to warn partygoers about the "extremely potent psychoactive substance responsible for a number of deaths in Australia and overseas".
Fearing potentially deadly consequences, police began a full-scale operation in May to trace the source of the pills and shut down the network of suppliers.
Detectives stormed a hotel room in Sutton on Friday night, in the state's alpine region, where they arrested Jeffrey Gilmour, 23, from Collaroy Plateau and Zachary Fenson, 23, from Wheeler Heights,
Mr Fenson, a furniture delivery driver, and Mr Gilmour have been charged with drug supply offences and were refused bail in Queanbeyan Local Court on Saturday.
The pair met at Northern Beaches Secondary College along with a third man, 23 year-old computer technician Joshua Hanley, from French's Forest, who was arrested later on Friday night and charged with drug supply.
Moments after the hotel room raid, police pounced on three homes in Collaroy Plateau, Frenchs Forest and Bankstown where they allegedly uncovered more of the 'blue Batman' pills and computer equipment.
Vinh Anh Hoang, 28, was arrested at the Bankstown home and charged with drug supply.
On Wednesday, police conducted a further 11 raids in the Cooma area and arrested eight men and one woman who are assisting with inquiries. Cash, firearms, cannabis, ecstasy tablets, amphetamines, war medals and snakes were also seized.
Assistant Commissioner Gary Worboys said the operation had put a "dent in this drug syndicate" and taken a "large amount of harmful drugs off our streets".
The northern beaches syndicate appear to be regulars on the ski fields, with all three uploading photos of weekend trips to Perisher and Thredbo.
They also went to many raves and bush doof parties.
Make sure you pick up next Wednesday's Gazette for a full report on the incident.
