Three men remanded over record nitrous oxide seizure

Three men have been remanded in custody for three weeks after police seized 13.5 tonnes of nitrous oxide, which a senior officer described as the largest seizure of its kind in Denmark, DR reported.

The men, aged 25, 41 and 48, were detained on Tuesday and appeared in a constitutional hearing at a department of Frederiksberg Court at Vestre Prison on Wednesday. All three deny the charges.

Police found 21,480 filled Fastgas nitrous oxide cylinders and 25 pallets of empty cylinders. The men are charged, among other offences, with aggravated violations of the nitrous oxide law.

Copenhagen Police allege that the men supplied and refilled nitrous oxide at warehouses in Gadstrup, south of Roskilde, and in Copenhagen. Police also believe they systematically sold the gas.

About 200,000 kroner in cash was found when the 48-year-old was arrested. Copenhagen Police said all three men were believed to have links to a gang environment.

Espen Godiksen, a deputy police inspector with Copenhagen Police, said the case pointed to an organised and structured import chain supplying the nitrous oxide trade in Denmark. He said police had seen the gas sold in shops, online and through direct handovers, in a way similar to other drugs.

The arrests were carried out by Copenhagen Police in cooperation with East Jutland Police and the Danish Tax Agency. A fourth man, aged 28, was arrested in western Aarhus in connection with the operation.

The 28-year-old was not remanded over the smaller amount of nitrous oxide found in a storage room in Tilst near Aarhus. However, he was charged with possessing and selling cocaine and MDMA discovered during a search of his home. He pleaded guilty on Wednesday and received an immediate sentence of two years and nine months.

Nitrous oxide is inhaled and produces a short-lived high while reducing the oxygen content of the blood. According to Copenhagen Police, it is also used while driving, creating a serious risk to other road users.