Police seize £300,000 cannabis plants in Huddersfield

Jul 1 2009 By Neil Atkinson

“There are many ways to spot a potential cannabis factory – a strong and unusual smell, a lot of banging noises as the factory is set up, people coming and going with bags of fertiliser and compost.

“The curtains are kept closed but bright lights left on around the clock are also an indicator.

“We will continue to conduct operations to target drugs in the community and we would urge local people to keep providing us with information”.

Organised criminal gangs, many from south-east Asia, are responsible for a rise in the number of so-called ‘factories’ being uncovered.

Most police forces across Britain have recorded a big increase in the number of successful raids and shutdowns.

Although 10 years ago the vast majority of cannabis in the UK was imported, charity Drugscope believes that today more than 90% is grown in this country.

So far there has not been a nationally co-ordinated crackdown on these illegal factories.

A Home Office spokesman said: “We are determined to make this country a hostile place for criminals involved in cannabis cultivation.

“The high levels of detection of cannabis farms, as revealed in these figures, are an encouraging sign and demonstrate our commitment to catching those who bring cannabis on to our streets”.

If you have information about drug dealing activity or are suspicions about a property being used to grow cannabis, then Dob in a Dealer by calling Crimestoppers, anonymously and in confidence, on 0800 555 111.