The two staffers were outreach workers employed by the health centre, not the injecting room. The centre said two staff members had been stood down, following their arrest. "North Richmond Community Health has begun a full investigation into this matter and will cooperate fully with Victoria Police, as its investigation continues," the centre said in a statement. "It’s not appropriate to comment further at this time." The role of outreach workers includes engaging with people who use drugs and encouraging them to use the injecting room. They also assess and monitor drug users at risk of overdose, provide a syringe retrieval service and monitor the surrounding area for inappropriate drug use and discarded equipment.

Police also raided homes in Richmond and Burnside Heights on Thursday, where they seized drugs and cash. Letitia Wilkinson, the chairwoman of a residents group that has been lobbying the government to move the safe injecting room, said she was not surprised by the allegations. "What’s happened to our community is unacceptable," she said. Acting Mental Health Minister Luke Donnellan said the allegations against the staff were very serious. "Such behaviour is completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated," he said. "The government will swiftly investigate the matter and take action."

The police investigation, dubbed Operation Sievers, targeting drug trafficking around Richmond has been running for three months. "While we recognise those who use illicit drugs have a health problem, we also know that drugs are a big contributor to crime in Victoria," Acting Superintendent Kelvin Gale said. A Victorian Police spokeswoman said: "Police are not alleging that any offences occurred inside the health facility in North Richmond." The Victorian Opposition has called for a full investigation into the extent of the allegations and how many people were involved. "We were always concerned about this facility becoming a honeypot for drug dealing," Opposition police spokesman David Southwick said.