31/01/2008 00:00:00
UK: Cannabis factory shut down in Swindon
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TWENTY cannabis factories have been closed down by police in Swindon in
the last 18 months.
And the latest was a big production unit in a family area of Swindon.
Officers know there are still a few more houses being used to grow the
drugs but said it is only a matter of time before their doors are also
knocked down.
Sgt Scott Hargreave said: "Cannabis is a significant problem nationally
and Swindon is no different. Britain is one of the biggest exporters of
cannabis to other countries.
"We have probably closed 20 to 25 factories down in the last 18 months.
"There are still one or two about, but we are aware of them.
"This is a huge money-making industry run by three or four organised
crime groups in Swindon.
"We have got individual departments that look at organised crime, we
have experts looking into how people make the stuff, others looking at
the dealers and some that look at how people get across the borders with
class A drugs.
"Our team is focused on it at the moment because it is one of the areas
identified by the community."
Sgt Hargreave was speaking following the raid on the latest factory,
where thousands of pounds worth of cannabis was found in Kingshill.
Police officers rammed in the door of the house in Stanier Street, to
find the male tenant watching TV, while the upstairs of his rented house
was piled high with drugs.
Officers said the makeshift factory was capable of generating a
£50,000-a-year income for the drug-maker.
The two bedrooms housed about 100 plants, ranging from seedlings to
five-foot tall trees ready for drying and selling.
Police also found at least £2,000 worth of dried herbal cannabis sealed
into plastic bags ready for sale at £20 a time and a cardboard box full
of the loose drug waiting to be weighed out into bags.
Sgt Hargreave said: "A big part of this is reassuring the community that
we are tackling drug problems, not only class A drugs, but class Bs like
amphetamines, speed and ecstasy as well as class C.
"This is a family neighbourhood and this kind of activity is not acceptable.
"We know where the drugs are and we will be visiting these establishments.
"The message we want to get across is that we know who you are and we
know what you are doing.
"We have targeted heroin, cocaine and social use cocaine, and now
cannabis, just in the last week.
"We have had three good results, and want to continue to encourage the
community to come forward. If people give us information, we will act on
it."
The Kingshill factory was rigged up with state-of-the-art growing,
lighting and ventilation systems.
"Most of the equipment needed is readily available from gardening shops,
but I would suggest he must have had some assistance to set this up,"
said Sgt Hargreave.
"This is a professional outfit capable of making thousands of pounds'
worth of drugs.
"This set-up would have been turning over about £50,000 to £60,000 a year."
Before raiding the address a police helicopter, using thermal imaging
technology flew over the house to try and identify high heat levels.
But Sgt Hargreave said community information was the most important tool
in tracking the factories down, as the complicated ventilation system
had left the property virtually undetectable.
A 35-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of cultivation of a class C
drug. He has been released on bail while the drugs are sent for
laboratory testing.
http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk
Source:
http://www.ukcia.org/news/shownewsarticle.php?articleid=13223
Author:
Gazette and Herald: Swindon via UKCIA
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