A Cardiff man caught with nearly 26,000 nitrous oxide cannisters has been jailed. 46-year-old Robert Arthur James Russ from Canton was arrested on Saturday, July 2, after police searched his home address.
More commonly known as laughing gas, nos, or chargers, nitrous oxide is sold in small silver canisters which are regularly found discarded in parks and open public spaces. It has several legitimate uses but when inhaled it can cause a feeling of euphoria or spark a giggling fit, hence its nickname.
However, the side effects of inhalation include nausea, fatigue and dizziness. It can even render the user unconsciousness or cause death by asphyxiation as a result of depleting the body's oxygen levels.
700 cannisters were found in Russ's house and car, while officers also discovered 42 boxes containing another 25,200 at a lock-up he kept on the city's Newport Road. Russ admitted to them being his and told officers he sells them to pay his bills.
He pleaded guilty to possessing a psychoactive substance with intent to supply, as well as to acquiring/using/possessing criminal property and to driving without third party insurance. He was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court on Monday (July 25) to 32 months inside.
It is illegal in both England and Wales for anyone to sell nitrous oxide to people under 18 if it's believed they will likely inhale it. Mixing alcohol with nitrous oxide can be fatal.
Anyone with information about the illegal sale of nitrous oxide or who witnesses suspicious activity where nitrous oxide may be getting consumed is asked to contact police. You can make a report by clicking here, but remember to always dial 999 in the case of an emergency.
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